Thursday morning, Senator Jon Ossoff, D-Georgia, joined Atlanta Mayor Andre Dickens as they announced upgrades to Concourses D and T inside Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport. The World’s Busiest Airport will receive $40 million, via a federal grant, for upgrades.
“We are upgrading Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport to improve airport efficiency and the passenger experience,” said Senator Ossoff. “These upgrades are possible thanks to the bipartisan infrastructure law we passed in Congress last year.”
The upgrades will widen and modernize the terminal while upgrading the passenger experience by installing more bathrooms and improving ADA accessibility.
“For generations, Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport has been the world’s busiest and most efficient airport, the most important piece of civilian infrastructure in the country, and a source of Black wealth. We must invest in our airport so it can keep flying high for generations to come,” said Congresswoman Nikema Williams in a written statement. “With this grant and investments from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, I am securing the resources needed so Hartsfield-Jackson Airport can continue to serve its millions of passengers.”
$619 million has been set aside by the infrastructure law for Georgia’s airports.
“Hartsfield-Jackson is the busiest and most efficient airport in the world, and we need to invest in its infrastructure for continued growth and leadership of the commercial aviation industry,” said Atlanta Mayor Andre Dickens. “This grant will create good-paying jobs as we widen Concourse D to bring the 40-year-old structure up to the level of the airport’s six other concourses. ATL will continue the work started by Mayor Jackson to ensure all eligible businesses will be provided an opportunity to participate in this project. I thank our federal delegation for their bipartisan commitment to infrastructure investment and for delivering these dollars to ATL.”
Senator Ossoff said the funding will improve the operating efficiency and expand the capacity of airports, which are crucial to Georgia’s economy.
Additionally, Hartsfield-Jackson will receive up to $500 million over the next five years that will be used for upgrades. According to Aviation General Manager Balram Bheodari, passenger facility charges and airline fees will fund a portion of the total cost of the project.
“We have not missed a beat we have planned for the upsurge in passengers over a year ago,” said Bheodari when asked about the uptick in air travel demand coming out of the COVID-19 pandemic. “We have our operations plan in place that we have implemented working closely with our stakeholders. We’re able to manage our operation very, very efficiently. I would venture to say we’re second to none in the industry.”
Nationwide, eighty-five airports will receive $1 billion in funding from the Infrastructure Law. On a call with reporters Wednesday, Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg said these grants will increase airport quality nationwide.
“It’s going to help make air travel safer, more accessible, and more efficient,” said U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg. “And it’s going to create a lot of good jobs in communities of all sizes.”