Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport plans to use a $40 million federal grant to help pay for three new gates to be added to Concourse E.
The grant funding from the bipartisan infrastructure law was originally announced last year for the widening of Concourse D, a massive project for which the Atlanta airport started enabling work this month.
Concourse D, the narrowest concourse at the world’s busiest airport, becomes cramped and congested during peak travel periods. It will be expanded and modernized through a $1.4 billion widening project that will take until 2028 to complete.
Airport officials say the Concourse E gates will be be part of the Concourse D widening project — because the work on Concourse D will require the closure of four to eight gates at a time.
That will lead to construction zones on the concourse, inconvenience for travelers and fewer gates available on Concourse D to handle flights. The new domestic gates on international Concourse E will help mitigate flight disruptions, according to officials.
Most of the $40 million in federal grant funding will go toward the E gates, said Hartsfield-Jackson general manager Balram Bheodari.
The airport last year opened five new gates on Concourse T, which, along with the new gates to be built on Concourse E, will help to alleviate the strain on gate space during the Concourse D construction project.
The first phase of the project will create 175 jobs, according to a press release from U.S. Sens. Jon Ossoff and Raphael Warnock and U.S. Rep. Nikema Williams. The bipartisan infrastructure law included about $619 million for airports in Georgia.
The $100 million construction of the three E gates is expected to start this year and take 12-15 months to complete; the cost is included in the $1.4 billion D widening price tag.
Credit: Source: Hartsfield-Jackson
Credit: Source: Hartsfield-Jackson
The expansions of Concourses D and E are among a number of projects under way at Hartsfield-Jackson.
The airport recently completed a $165.7 million South de-icing complex to add de-icing pads on the south side of the airfield.
Work is under way to replace ceiling tiles in the domestic terminal. There are ongoing years-long projects to shore up the Terminal South parking deck, revamp the main security checkpoint, extend the tunnel for the Plane Train and expand escalators and elevators at Concourse T.
The construction projects cause disruptions for travelers at a number of spots around the airport — reducing parking next to the domestic terminal, shutting some security screening lanes and requiring detours during overnight construction periods.
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