New Zealand airport imposes cuddle cap with 3-minute limit on goodbye hugs to avoid traffic jams

Associated Press

WELLINGTON, New Zealand (AP) — Travelers leaving the New Zealand city of Dunedin will have to keep their emotional farewells brief after a new three-minute time limit was imposed on goodbye hugs in the airport’s drop-off area in order to prevent lingering cuddles from causing traffic jams. “Max hug time three minutes,” signs outside the terminal warn, adding that those seeking “fonder farewells” should head to the airport’s parking lot instead. The cuddle cap was imposed in September to “keep things moving smoothly” in the redesigned passenger drop-off area outside the airport, which is meant for “quick farewells only” CEO Daniel De Bono said.