Zone 3, 14.0 miles
Raleigh to RDU airport transfer you reserve at a fixed rate
A Raleigh to RDU airport transfer covers 14.0 miles by road and about 26 minutes when traffic runs free, measured from the Warehouse District downtown to the Terminal 2 curb. Raleigh sits in Zone 3. You send your address and flight, the desk checks a car company in the Triangle for that time, and you get back a fixed rate, a vehicle class and a pickup time before anything is reserved.
- Road miles
- 14.0from the Terminal 2 curb
- Minutes
- 26free-flow, no traffic
- Rate zone
- Zone 3: 26 to 30 minutes
- Sedan from
- $95per car, one way
Downtown streets onto I-40 west
From downtown the usual line runs up Saint Marys Street to Wade Avenue, then onto I-40 heading west, the stretch signed as the Raleigh-Chapel Hill Expressway. The car leaves the interstate for the airport roads and follows John Brantley Boulevard toward the terminals. The fastest route carries no toll.
Wade Avenue and I-40 fill up on weekday mornings and again in the late afternoon, and a crash on the interstate can back up the ramps. That is why your door time adds 15 minutes to the measured 26, before the curb margin you choose. North Raleigh addresses may join I-40 or I-540 at another ramp, and the quoted fixed rate stays as quoted.
Door times from Raleigh for departures
| Departure time | Car at your door |
|---|---|
| 6:00 am | 3:15 am |
| 7:30 am | 4:45 am |
| 9:00 am | 6:15 am |
| 12:00 pm | 9:15 am |
| 3:30 pm | 12:45 pm |
| 6:45 pm | 4:00 pm |
| 9:30 pm | 6:45 pm |
Pickups at houses, apartments and offices
Most Raleigh pickups are houses, apartment and condo buildings inside the beltline, office parks along I-40 and I-440, and hotels near the center. On a departure the driver waits at your door for up to 15 minutes, included in the rate.
When you send the request, tell the desk:
- the entrance to use and any gate or buzzer code
- whether the car can stop at the curb or has to pull into a parking deck or loading lane
- how many riders and checked bags, so the vehicle class fits
- the age and weight of each child, and whether you bring a seat
Raleigh starting rates per car
| Vehicle | Rate from |
|---|---|
| Sedan, 3 riders, 3 bags | $95 |
| SUV, 5 riders, 5 bags | $125 |
| Van, 10 riders, 10 bags | $205 |
Landing at RDU and heading home
Give the desk your flight number when reserving. The car company follows the real landing time, and 45 included minutes of waiting start from it. Meanwhile the car sits in the airport's commercial vehicle lot a few minutes away. With your bags in hand, text or call the driver and walk out past baggage claim to the pickup zone (Zone 1 at Terminal 1, Zone 8 at Terminal 2). Drivers stay with their cars and meet you there.
The drive back reverses the morning line: I-40 east, Wade Avenue, then your own streets. At the end of the ride you pay the car company the fixed rate in your confirmation, by card or cash in the car.
Nearby towns: Garner, Cary, Knightdale
Coming back later
Two legs in one request
A round trip is two one-way rates added together. Put the outbound and return flights in one request, and the desk checks both dates with the car company before you confirm either leg.
+1 (919) 859-4718Our telephone keeps the airport's clock: it is staffed every day from 4:00 am Eastern Time, ahead of the first departures, until the last scheduled arrival of the night is on the ground. For a pickup before 4:00 am, the car company's number in your confirmation reaches the driver's dispatcher. Requests sent through the website form are received 24/7.