Photo Courtesy of the Office of the Governor
Governor Cuomo said “the new roadway network puts LaGuardia Airport well on the way to becoming one of the most accessible airports in the nation.”
By Forum Staff
Governor Andrew Cuomo on Thursday announced the opening of LaGuardia Airport’s new Terminal C outer roadway system, completed six months ahead of schedule.
Central to the vision for a new LaGuardia Airport is creating a unified airport with two new main terminals connected by a Central Hall and a new, simplified and highly efficient roadway system that will allow for speedier vehicular movements, Cuomo noted.
The Port Authority has allotted $625 million to new roadway/bridge construction as part of the overall $8 billion LaGuardia Airport modernization project. This includes LaGuardia Gateway Partners work on the western half of the airport at the new Terminal B and Delta’s rebuilding of the entire eastern half of the airport to replace existing Terminals C and D with a single new Terminal C, which will be complete mid-2022.
Twenty-six new bridges/flyovers replace 15 existing bridges and significantly eliminate the need for on-airport traffic signals. Prior to the start of the modernization program, there were 19 traffic signals for drivers to navigate at Terminals B, C and D. Following completion of the modernization project, only three of those 19 traffic signals are expected to remain. Most of the on-airport road crossings will have been eliminated by raising traffic up onto bridges, sometimes three levels high. To further improve traffic flow, the 8.4 miles of new airport roadway will feature more and wider lanes than the previous 7.7 miles of airport roadway.
Roadway construction was accelerated during the pandemic as a result of reduced traffic and travel volume at the airport.
The piece of the Outer Roadway network that is being activated was a section of roughly 1 mile in length on two new bridges, consisting of upper and lower level roads, in front of the new Terminal C, which is under construction by Delta Airlines.
Cuomo also announced on Thursday $1.5 million in additional funding to the Council for Airport Opportunity for the LaGuardia Career Center which, working with Elmcor Youth and Adult Activities and Neighborhood Housing Services of Queens CDC, will continue to provide opportunities for local residents to benefit from the airport’s redevelopment through 2025. The Council for Airport Opportunity is a nonprofit organization that provides airport-related recruitment and job placement services to Queens residents, including those who are minority and disadvantaged.
“A completely redesigned road network—with state-of-the-art traffic management systems and fewer signaled intersections—will make it far easier for travelers arriving by vehicle to get to terminals or parking garages, representing a significant step forward as we create a world-class travel experience at a new LaGuardia Airport,” Cuomo said. “Along with plans to build AirTrain LaGuardia, which will create the airport’s first reliable and fast mass transit rail link to Manhattan, the new roadway network puts LaGuardia Airport well on the way to becoming one of the most accessible airports in the nation.”
In 2015, Cuomo first unveiled his vision for the comprehensive redevelopment of LaGuardia. The $8 billion project, two-thirds of which is funded through private financing and existing passenger fees, broke ground four years ago.
