$13B reno, new terminals at JFK
John F. Kennedy International Airport is getting a $13 billion makeover — adding two new terminals, better security, runways and ground transport, Gov. Cuomo said Thursday.
The improvements will increase capacity by at least 15 million passengers a year, Cuomo said, as he outlined the ambitious plan to improve one of the busiest but least efficient airports in the country.
Cuomo, who grew up in Queens, said JFK has been “outdated” throughout his life. Travelers have to navigate a “spaghetti bowl” of roads to get to the hub, he added.
An upgrade is “long, long overdue,” he said.
A quarter of flights to JFK, which handles 60 million passengers a year, were delayed this year through July, according to federal stats.
Private airlines are footing much of the cost — $12 billion — for the two new terminals, plus a central hub in the middle of JFK.
They’ll replace the outdated and far-flung existing terminals.
“We’re transforming that disconnected hodgepodge into a unified, 21st century airport,” Port Authority chief Rick Cotton said.
A $7 billion terminal on the south side of the airport will be financed and built by a partnership of four international carriers — Lufthansa, Air France, Korean Air Lines and Japan Airlines.
A $3 billion terminal on the north side will be built and paid for by Jet Blue.
The Port Authority will put in $1 billion of its capital money for infrastructure work around JFK.
The new gates will be open in 2023 and the full project done in 2025.
The new airport won’t have new runways, but Cotton said that’s not needed to add 15 million flyers through JFK. The new terminals will handle bigger airplanes and new air traffic technology will get more flights through JFK.
JFK with four runways will be able to handle up to 75 million flyers by 2030 — nearly as much traffic as Heathrow Airport in London can handle today with two runways, Cotton said.
“The capacity issue at Kennedy is the passenger facility, the roadway, the capability of handling that volume of passengers coming through the existing facilities, and handling them in a way that compares to the top quality airports globally,” Cotton said.