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Austin airport getting more than $39M from federal government for improvements, additional expansion

More than $25 million of the haul will go towards improving the Barbara Jordan Terminal.

AUSTIN, Texas — Austin-Bergstrom International Airport (AUS) will receive more funding for expansion and improvements.

According to U.S. Rep. Lloyd Doggett (D-TX), as part of the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, the airport is set to receive more than $39 million to advance expansion and create a more efficient travel process for passengers.

“Great news: Thanks to the Infrastructure Law, the Austin airport is receiving over $39 million toward designing the expansion of the Barbara Jordan Terminal and its new 20 gate midfield Concourse B. This is an important step forward to advance this much-needed airport expansion. In order for Austin to remain an international city—a true hub of education, culture, and technology—we must be properly equipped to support world-class endeavors and worldwide visitors. While essential expansion and development will eventually require substantially more, our airport has now already received over $100 million through the Infrastructure Law, approved with my support over the objection of every Texas Republican in both the House and Senate,” Doggett said in a statement released Wednesday.

More than half ($25 million) of the $39.51 million allocated will go toward improvements of the main Barbara Jordan Terminal, with the plan to build an atrium with a concrete slab on the ticketing and concourse level that would add approximately 13,000 square feet. 

The additional space will allow for more security screening, which in turn would allow more passengers to access the terminal and create a smoother process navigating through the terminal. There would also be additional space created for baggage check and passenger processing, as well as upgrades of mechanical, electrical and plumbing systems.

A smaller portion ($14.25 million) of the sum will go toward designing the airport’s new 20-gate Concourse B and related infrastructure to meet the airport’s long-term passenger activity level demand – an early phase of Austin’s Airport Expansion and Development Program. The program includes all passenger and tenant spaces, passenger boarding bridges, baggage handling system expansion, apron support spaces, back of the house, baggage makeup, tug and other support spaces, as well as all related aircraft apron expansion and underground utilities, such as an in-pavement hydrant fueling system.

The project would also include the construction of a new subgrade tunnel that would connect the Barbara Jordan Terminal with the new Concourse B and include the capability of expanding to a prospective Concourse C.

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