Dunedin Airport has made international headlines by introducing a bizarre rule for their drop-off zone — capping ‘hug time’ at three minutes.
The signs, which have gone viral on social media, specify “max hug time 3 minutes” at the New Zealand airport and direct those looking for “fonder farewells” to use the carpark.
Speaking to RNZ earlier this month, Dunedin Airport chief executive Dan De Bono said the signs were used because the airport’s management was trying to have “fun” and avoid “intense” messaging that threatened people with fines or other punishment for congesting traffic.
“It’s caused quite a stir, we’ve got quite a bit of a conversation going,” De Bono said.
“It’s really about enabling enough space for others to have hugs.”
The story has made international news, with CNN, the New York Post and the Times of India all reporting on the restriction of time for hugs between travellers and loved ones.
Some social media users have criticised the policy, with one that the airport management should “stop telling people what to do” and another branding the rule “inhumane”.
However, many airports in Australia and New Zealand have similar rules, including Sydney Airport and Melbourne’s Tullamarine Airport, which both specify that cars dropping off passengers stop for no longer than one minute.
Speaking to RNZ, De Bono said despite many jokes on social media suggesting otherwise, there were no punishments for passengers who exceeded the hug limit.
“All our team do is ask them politely move onto the carpark to create some space for others — it’s nothing more than that, we’re not going to call the ‘hug police.'”
