LaGuardia isn’t the only New York City airport that will be receiving a makeover in the coming years. New York Governor Andrew Cuomo announced that John F. Kennedy International Airport will receive its own transformation, which is projected to cost $10 billion. The airport, which served 200,000 annual passengers when it opened in 1948, saw 60 million passengers pass through its six terminals in 2016—a number that is expected to reach 75 million by 2030. With this growth in mind, a master plan was developed that would address the airport’s current deficiencies, including separate terminals, transportation and access, and frequent delays.
The plan calls for the expansion of new terminals and the redevelopment of older structures into an interconnected and unified airport. This includes making sure that amenities, such as shopping, dining, and meeting facilities, are consistent across all the terminals. Renderings of the project have been released, although architecture firms have yet to officially come on board.
But while connected terminals will certainly make passengers' lives easier, the biggest improvements will help travelers spend less time getting to the airport and their final destination. The airport's tangled roadways will be simplified into a ring road around centralized parking lots. The plan also explores ways to improve mass transit to JFK, either by expanding and improving the AirTrain or with a new system. JFK notorious delays will be helped by expanded taxiways and an increased number of flight spots. All of which is welcome news to anyone who has found themselves stuck—either in traffic on their way to the airport or in the terminal itself.
