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SOMBA K'E/YELLOWKNIFE - One frequent Yellowknife airport parking user doesn't think the recently-installed automated system will last much longer.

George Gelb's job as a denturist - the only one in the NWT that actually lives here - takes him to communities all over the territory. Last week, he flew to Hay River for two days and left his truck parked at the airport.

George Gelb stands with his truck - this time on the right side of the airport parking lot gate. - Lauren McKeon/NNSL photo

He paid via credit card and processed his ticket inside the airport - the now normal routine - grabbed his luggage with his wife, jumped into his black Silverado and approached the automated gate at the exit.

Nothing happened.

"I took me 35 minutes to fly to Yellowknife and 25 minutes to get out of the airport," said Gelb.

Trapped inside the parking lot, Gelb parked his truck, went back inside the terminal and tried to contact someone on the intercom located on the airport ticket kiosk.

The man on the other side seemed to be having difficulty picking up what he was saying, however, and directed him to find a security guard, said Gelb.

"So I'm walking around the airport looking to find a security guard. I finally found one that seemed to know what to do."

That security guard advised Gelb to pay by cash, which he did. The guard escorted Gelb to the gate to ensure he was able to leave.

"I think there's something wrong with those machines. I don't think (the airport) is going to get away with it, as far as not using a live person at the gate," he said.

Gelb added the diagram showing how to insert the ticket at the exit gate is backwards, showing the arrow facing down, when it should be up. A label has since been affixed to tell drivers the right way to insert their ticket.

While Gelb said he has met other people who have had similar problems, Earl Blacklock, spokesperson for the Department of Transportation, said it was the first he had heard of it.

The department administers the airport and has received weekly reports of how the new system is progressing since its implementation.

Blacklock said at first people were having problems leaving the airport because many assumed that no ticket was needed for the first free hour.

"Of course the machine has no way of knowing how long you've been there until you've gone through the kiosk in the terminal," he said.

Blacklock added since the department put up clearer signage, that particular problem has decreased.

"I'm not aware of any problems that have arisen from a properly processed ticket," he said.

As for eliminating the machine and replacing it with a person: "There's no plan to have someone (there); that would kind of defeat the whole idea."