SEAAirport Guide

Wheelchair assistance at Seattle airport: how to arrange it

Book wheelchair help with your airline before you fly, then call Prospect Airport Services for the stretch to the ticket counter. Free, with phone numbers.

The curved wire-mesh ramp tower and grey concrete garage of the Rental Car Facility beside the road near Seattle-Tacoma airport.
Rental Car Facility, SeaTac

At SEA your airline arranges wheelchair help from the ticket counter on, and Prospect Airport Services, at (206) 246-1550, brings you to that counter. Call the airline before you fly and Prospect when you arrive. Neither charges, though the Port of Seattle says gratuities are greatly appreciated.

Who to call for each stretch

Stretch Who provides it What to do
Before you travel Your airline Ask for wheelchair assistance when you book or right after. Our wheelchair assistance page lists the airlines’ accessibility phone lines
Link station, baggage claim or garage to the ticket counter Prospect Airport Services Call Prospect when you arrive
Rental car shuttle drop-off to the ticket counter Prospect Airport Services Call Prospect at (206) 246-1550 when you arrive
Ticket counter through security to the gate, gate to gate, boarding and during the flight Your airline Booked in advance
Arrival gate to baggage claim and ground transportation Your airline Booked in advance

Who qualifies for wheelchair and special assistance

Need wheelchair or medical help, including for a nonvisible disability? Contact your airline. The Port of Seattle’s accessibility guidance includes both visible and invisible disabilities.

For help at the checkpoint, TSA offers a Passenger Support Specialist to people with disabilities or medical conditions. TSA lists examples such as difficulty following instructions, medically necessary liquids over 3.4 oz, or a child with a disability or medical condition. This helps with screening, but does not provide a wheelchair, faster screening or an exemption from screening. Arrange the wheelchair with your airline before you arrive.

Book with the airline first

When you make the wheelchair request, ask about a specific seat or medication storage if you need either.

The Port of Seattle asks you to reserve wheelchair help with your airline before arriving at SEA. It gives no set number of hours, so ask your airline when to make the request.

For airline support, the Port of Seattle lists Alaska at 1-800-503-0101, American at 800-433-7300 and Sun Country at 651-905-2737. It lists Delta at 404-209-3434, Southwest at 1-800-435-9792, United at 1-313-234-6992 or 1-800-228-2744, and Air Canada at 1-800-667-4732. For another carrier, use our wheelchair assistance page.

Tell Prospect which counter you need. For Alaska, that’s on the Main Terminal ticketing level, Level 5, near Door 29, before security. Alaska also has self check-in kiosks, bag tag stations and bag drops on Level 4 by Skybridges 5 and 6, closer to the Link walkway. American and Sun Country check in on Level 5 before security too.

Request a Passenger Support Specialist at least 72 hours before departure through the TSA Cares form or at (855) 787-2227. Phone hours are 8 a.m. to 11 p.m. ET on weekdays and 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. ET on weekends and holidays.

You can reach any gate through any of the six public checkpoints. If you need to choose a checkpoint by hours, Checkpoint 4 is open 24 hours. Checkpoints 1 and 5 open 4 a.m. to 8 p.m., Checkpoint 2 from 4 a.m. to 4 p.m., Checkpoint 3 from 4 a.m. to 11:30 p.m., and Checkpoint 6 from 4 a.m. to 10 p.m. The IAF transfer checkpoint is for connecting international arrivals only, from 6 a.m. to 9:45 p.m. See our security page for locations.

Once you’re through security, A, B, C and D connect on foot. The Green Line reaches N from C or D, and the Blue Line reaches S from A or B. To change loops, the Yellow Line joins A and D.

Where help meets you before security

The Port of Seattle’s map marks wheelchair assistance points by Doors 7, 9, 17, 23 and 27 and at Skybridge 5. All of them sit before security. On the departures level, a Wheelchair & ADA Assistance Area by Door 23 serves American, Sun Country and Virgin Atlantic passengers.

For the help points and phone numbers together, see our wheelchair assistance listing.

If you’d rather ask in person before security, try the information desk on the ticketing level between Checkpoints 4 and 5, or the one in the Gina Marie Lindsey Arrivals Hall near Checkpoint 1.

If you’re already past security in A Concourse, there’s an information desk between Gates A5 and A6.

Arriving by light rail

Coming from the Link station? Prospect can pick you up there. Call as the train pulls in and ask where to meet the assistant.

The station sits at the end of the garage walkway. The free Train-to-Plane cart runs continuously from 5 a.m. to midnight between the station and garage Level 4 near Skybridges 5 and 6. For cart assistance, call (206) 787-4069 or (206) 787-5906. From the garage, cross to the terminal and go up to ticketing. For wheelchair help on that stretch, ask Prospect to meet you at the station.

From the station platform, use the elevator or escalator to reach the mezzanine. The cart loads near the entrance to the walkway toward the terminal. If you’re making the trip in reverse from baggage claim, start at Carousel 16, go up one floor and cross Skybridge 6. Turn left through the garage for the station and cart. Our Train-to-Plane cart page has the route.

Other ways to reach the terminal

Option What the Port of Seattle lists
Taxi Taxi service runs 24 hours and includes wheelchair-accessible vans. Request one from SP Plus Taxi Service at (206) 708-6504. The minimum fare from SEA is $20, with a possible $1 on-demand surcharge
Taxi pickup for limited mobility Baggage Claim level by Skybridge 2 near Door 10, or Skybridge 5 near Door 22. Tell the taxi provider you need mobility assistance
Uber, Lyft or Wingz Pickup on the drives is allowed for riders who need help. Tell your driver you need drive pickup. Either of you can call Ground Transportation at (206) 787-5906 with the driver’s name and plate number. You can also arrange help through Prospect
Rental car shuttle Free, with curbside stops by Doors 24 and 2 on the baggage claim level. Shuttles run 24 hours a day, year-round. Each bus has a ramp, wheelchair securements and priority seating, and carries one wheelchair per load. If you need a hand-control rental car, reserve it in advance. The rental companies add no charge for hand controls
Personal vehicle Blue-signed loading areas on the drives. Waiting isn’t allowed, and unattended vehicles are ticketed and towed

If you’re driving, General Parking has ADA stalls on Floors 1, 3, 5 and 7. Its rates are $8 per hour, $37 per day or $222 per week. Floor 4 Reserved Parking also has ADA stalls and costs $47 per 24 hours. Book online at least 6 hours before entry. Its ADA stalls are first come, first served and cannot be reserved. The over-height lot has 4 ADA stalls at General Parking rates. Its wheelchair-accessible path runs through garage Floor 1 to the Main Terminal by elevator.

What travelers say

In 4 News Now’s video, one of Alaska Airlines’ pilot self-driving wheelchairs takes a traveler to Gate C15. A speaker said staff would still provide wheelchair support throughout the airport.

Under that video, one traveler reported that a long wait for someone to push a wheelchair caused them to miss a flight. Another traveler said the self-driving chair stops when someone gets close or cuts in front of it. A third traveler said their ride to the gate took 4 minutes, compared with 30 seconds with someone pushing.

A paid option, and meeting a traveler

CLEAR Concierge is an optional paid service starting at $99, according to the Port of Seattle. That price covers a curbside greeting, bag help and an escort through the CLEAR+ lane to the gate.

If you’re meeting someone through the Visitor Pass program, SEA wheelchairs and attendants aren’t available with that pass. You may bring your own wheelchair or mobility aid through the checkpoint.

If help doesn’t show up

Before security, call Prospect again. After security, go to the airline’s gate agent or ticket counter, since the airline owns that stretch. File a complaint with the airline first. The Port of Seattle’s ADA Coordinator, at 206-787-3132, acknowledges complaints sent to the Port and forwards airline complaints to the airline.

Sources