The busiest airport in the world is getting an upgrade. Atlanta’s Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport (ATL) snagged a $40 million grant from the federal government to widen Concourse D – a much-needed modification.
Widely regarded as the world’s busiest airport, the Atlanta Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport sees millions and millions of passengers travel through its concourses every year and one of them desperately needed a makeover. Concourse D was originally designed for smaller airplanes, however, it now serves larger planes and more passengers and was easily the most cramped concourse.
Earlier this year, the Atlanta City Council’s transportation committee authorized a new project to widen and lengthen Concourse D as part of an airport improvement project. Concourse D is currently a mere 60 feet wide compared to the 90-foot width of the other concourses. As part of this project, the concourse will be widened to 120 feet. It will also be extended by another 145 feet.
The project is expected to last for several years, cost hundreds of millions of dollars, and bring around 500 jobs to the Atlanta area. As part of the trillion-dollar infrastructure deal signed by President Biden in late 2021, millions of dollars were made available for airport improvements via a grant program.
Earlier this week, the Biden Administration announced awardees for the grant program including a $40 million award for the Atlanta airport. The infrastructure bill itself included over 600 million dollars in total for Georgia airports – something many rural airports will use to modernize their infrastructure over time.
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Great to hear. Just about every airport terminal these days is open and airy but ATL D feels like an underground bus station.