Newark Liberty International Airport (EWR) celebrated the groundbreaking of the new Terminal One, which will replace the dated Terminal A, in conjunction with the airport’s 90th anniversary.
Terminal A opened in 1973 was built to accommodate a maximum capacity of 9 million passengers each year. It served more than 11 million passengers in 2017 and is now functionally obsolete.
Terminal One should be fully operational by 2022 and is designed to accommodate 13.6 million passengers. It is designed with the capability of further expansion, but at its outset will come with 33 common-use gates for aircraft, as well as 1 million square feet of designated terminal, check-in, security, and baggage claim spaces. It is the first — and largest — part of a greater improvement effort by the airport which will eventually see $2.7 billion put to the task.
“As a powerful economic engine, the new Terminal One at Newark Liberty will set standards for 21st-century terminal design, customer amenities, and operations,” New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy said. “It will create high-paying union construction jobs in the near term while laying the groundwork for regional economic growth for generations.”
Terminal One will be built in stages to minimize the disruption of passenger operations. A partial opening will occur in 2021 with 21 gates and the addition of a new parking facility. The rest will follow over the next year.
“The Port Authority is transforming Newark Liberty and its other airports into a world-class operational system with best-in-class customer amenities,’’ Port Authority Executive Director Rick Cotton said. “Our New Jersey and New York airports must be 21st-century gateways befitting the importance and stature of the metropolitan area, comparing favorably with any airport in the world in providing top-shelf customer experience for all passengers.”
At project’s end, the Port Authority expects it to generate a more than $4.6 billion influx into the region, as well as create 23,000 jobs.