We present direct measurements of interwell carrier transport in InGaAsP quantum well (QW) laser structures performed by time‐resolved photoluminescence. Conditions of originally empty and filled wells are explored. In both cases, the time for the hole transport across the structure is found to be of the order of tens of picoseconds. Comparison of experimental results and simulations allowed us to develop an adequate interwell carrier transport model that includes thermionic capture/emission over the QW interfaces and drift/diffusion in the barrier regions. We show that dynamic consideration of carrier densities and band bending for each QW are essential. ©1996 American Institute of Physics.