Austin airport to see another record-breaking summer, so what does that mean for expansions?

Credit: City of Austin

KVUE
Author: Ford Sanders
Published: 10:45 PM CDT May 17, 2023

AUSTIN, Texas — As Memorial Day approaches, staff at Austin's airport say they're getting ready to see another record-breaking summer travel season.

So what does this mean for projects that are in the works and what's already been done to accommodate growth?

As Austin's airport continues to set records every month and year, the amount of people coming in and out of the airport is only going up.

Officials with Austin-Bergstrom International say last summer, around 7.7 million passengers traveled through AUS between May and August.

Airport spokesperson Elizabeth Ferrer said that number is expected to increase significantly this year.

To help with that growth, airlines are adding more destinations from Austin and some are using larger aircrafts to add up to 7% more airline seats than last summer.

Ferrer said these are important steps to take, but she knows the airport itself has work to do.

"Our biggest crown jewel short-term that we are excited to be starting off is the west side expansion. So on the west side of the terminal, we are going to be adding over 84,000 square feet of space. It's going to be on three levels," said Ferrer.

Other expansions include updates to TSA's machines to allow for an easier check-in as well as updates to baggage processing systems. However, larger projects are in the works.

"When you're talking about the really bigger scale things, like a midfield concourse and an underground tunnel to connect to that, there's so many logistics. We'll also have to be adding a different runway," said Ferrer.

As far as the West Gate expansion, a groundbreaking will happen this summer, and its completion is expected in about three years' time. It will include three new gates for the airport.