Huntsville International Airport lifted the curtain Friday on a $14 million overhaul designed to help travelers enter and exit the concourse faster and more securely.
The redesigned “concourse connector” – which departing travelers pass through after TSA security on the way to their gate – now has two elevators, four escalators and two stairwells. That’s twice the access compared with the one elevator, one stairwell and two escalators there before.
Arriving passengers will now pass from the concourse into the terminal lobby through three exit lanes with breach-control doors. Previously, they exited through a corridor with a posted guard.
The renovations, “will mean an improved experience for all passengers,” said airport CEO Butch Roberts in a news release, noting the upgrades will particularly benefit travelers with children and those with limited mobility.
Robins & Morton was the general contractor, and the $14 million project was covered by a mix of Federal Aviation Administration grants and airport capital improvement funds.
The redesigned concourse connector is the first of several terminal improvements scheduled to come online this year. Joey Ceci, chairman of the Port of Huntsville board of directors, said the upgraded facilities will help the airport “prepare for more passengers” in 2025. The airport has set back-to-back traveler volume records the past two years.
A Starbucks coffee outpost and Interstellar Pizza are scheduled to open in the concourse in May, part of what airport officials have described as a “comprehensive upgrade” to dining options.
In July, work is expected to be completed on a $5.7 million expansion of the concourse restrooms. And a facelift to the pre-security retail space is on track open in September.