Special Reports
Major NYC airport upgrades have led to record numbers of passengers
The region’s airports have only recently begun to surpass pre-pandemic levels of flyers.
The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey is in the midst of a multibillion-dollar overhaul of its three major airports, John F. Kennedy International, Newark Liberty International and LaGuardia airports, and the authority is starting to see the returns on its investments. Air travel in the New York City region is now above pre-pandemic levels, passenger survey responses and independent ratings are on the upswing. Here’s a snapshot of key details at Kennedy (JFK), LaGuardia (LGA) and Newark (EWR).
JFK
Price tag: $19 billion ($15 billion private, $4 billion Port Authority financing)
Timeline: Projected to be completed in 2028 (Terminal 8 expansion completed in November 2022; Terminal 4 expansion to be completed in 2024; Terminal 6 phases in 2026 and 2028; New Terminal One phases in 2026 and 2030; new airport roadway and ground transit center in 2026.)
Construction jobs: 19,000 (projected)
Economic impact: About 40,500 people are employed at the airport. The airport contributes over $45 billion in economic activity to the New York-New Jersey metropolitan region, supporting more than 238,000 total jobs and $19 billion in annual wages.
Annual passenger totals:
2019: 62,571,463
2020: 16,630,642
2021: 30,788,322
2022: 55,287,711
2023: 62,516,750
LGA
Price tag: $8 billion (two-thirds private, one-third Port Authority financing)
Timeline: Substantially completed in 2022 (LaGuardia Terminal B completed in January 2022; LaGuardia Terminal C substantially completed June 2022, with final gates to be completed in 2024.)
Construction jobs: 7,000
Economic impact: About 15,800 people are employed at LaGuardia Airport. The airport contributes more than $13.6 billion in economic activity to the New York-New Jersey metropolitan region, supporting 62,000 total jobs and nearly $6 billion in annual wages.
Annual passenger totals:
2019: 31,084,894
2020: 8,245,192
2021: 15,601,063
2022: 28,997,592
2023: 32,400,000
EWR
Price tag: $3 billion (Port Authority financing)
Timeline: Terminal A completed in 2023
Construction jobs: 2,500
Economic impact: About 23,000 people are employed at Newark Airport. The airport contributes nearly $29.3 billion in annual economic activity to the New York-New Jersey metropolitan region, supporting more than 137,000 total jobs and nearly $12.5 billion in annual wages.
Annual passenger totals:
2019: 46,389,037
2020: 15,892,982
2021: 29,049,552
2022: 43,565,254
2023: 49,100,000
Source: Port Authority of New York and New Jersey
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