Hey guys, welcome back to the channel! Today, we’ll be looking at yet another airport
for our Airport Future series, and this time we’re heading south of the border to check
out another US airport, namely New York’s LaGuardia Airport. Long been hailed as one
of, if not, the worst airport in the United States, LaGuardia’s age is definitely showing
through its outdated facilities and lack of upkeep. However, with the LaGuardia redevelopment
plan well in progress, the airport will be completely renewed in a few short years, and
will hopefully shake off the bad image in the process, evolving with the times from
what feels like an airport in a third-world country to a modern and well-designed airport
that can stand strong among the airports in the country. Let’s dive into the current
situation of the airport, and explore the future of LaGuardia Airport.
[Intro]
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Alright, time to get back to the main content of the day.
LaGuardia Airport has had many different names throughout its 80 year history, from Glenn
H. Curtiss Airport, North Beach Airport, to New York Municipal Airport-LaGuardia Field,
and finally LaGuardia Airport in 1953, named after a former New York City mayor who served
when the airport was built. A hub for American Airlines and Delta Air Lines, the airport
is the third busiest airport serving the Big Apple and the twentieth busiest in the United
States, with more than 31 million passengers travelling to and from the airport in 2019.
The most important part of any airport is the runway and taxiway system, as they allow
planes to get around and actually carry people to their destinations. Currently, there are
two runways in operation here at LaGuardia Airport, and they cross to create a corner
inside of which the rest of the airport, including the terminals are located. At the time of
the airport’s opening, there were actually 4 different runways all at 45 degrees to each
other. However, one closed soon after due to its length, and the other was closed in
order to make room for expanding the terminals. The airport has left the remaining two runways
largely unchanged since the 60s amid criticism from pilots regarding their lengths, often
compared to landing on an aircraft carrier combined with the watery view right here.
Next up, we’ll take a look at the terminals of the airport. There are four different terminals
in the airport, letter-named from A to D, and they’re connected by bus and walkway
connections.
Terminal A, or the Marine Air Terminal, is the original terminal for international flights.
It’s the westernmost terminal, and is the only terminal not located inside the runways,
but on the other side of the western runway. Terminal A used to be quite full, but airlines
began to slowly move out and into the other terminals, and at the moment JetBlue remains
as the only tenant of Terminal A.
Terminal B, also known as the central Terminal Building, is indeed located at the center
of the airport complex nestled near the intersection of the runways, and is the largest of all
the terminals. It serves most of the airlines that are actually here at LaGuardia, and it’s
where the hub for American Airlines is located. With four concourses, Terminal B is the subject
of a major portion of the expansions here, which we’ll cover later in this video.
Terminal C and D are the two terminals on the east end of the airport, and they are
connected together with a 600-foot walkway into a larger hub. These two terminals are
primarily used by Delta as their hub, with the airline managing the two terminals.
In terms of driving access and parking here at LaGuardia, the airport is located right
off the Grand Central Parkway, which connects to various other expressways for you to get
around the whole city. Short term parking is located at garages and lots right next
to the terminals, with a cell phone waiting lot near terminal A, and there’s a long
term parking lot on the other side of the parkway that you need to take a shuttle bus
to get to.
If you would rather take public transit than to drive, there’s a few options to choose
from as well. MTA operates regional buses that connect the airport to the Long Island
Rail Road and the New York Subway, including two Select Bus Service BRT-Lite routes, and
3 regular bus routes. These buses don’t all stop at every terminal though, so you’ll
need to be more selective with which bus you take depending on where you’re heading.
It’s certainly not as convenient as having a rail link to the center of the city especially
given the fact that NYC is known for their subways, but it’ll do in a pinch. There’s
also a free shuttle that connects the terminals and the parking lots, so you won’t have
to worry about getting around the airport.
Alright guys, so this is the current situation of LaGuardia Airport’s passenger facilities.
Many of these are indeed very dated given the airport’s age and location, but at least
the airport staggers on and serves the passenger population well enough. With complaints and
“worst airport in the country” titles stacking up though, New York Governor Andrew
Cuomo finally announced an 8 billion dollar reconstruction plan to completely replace
the existing airport in 2015, and this is what we will be covering in the second part
of this video. The most significant new airport project in the whole country in more than
2 decades, the reconstruction project broke ground in 2016 and is slated to be completed
by next year, and we’ll take a look at it section by section now.
As mentioned before, Terminal B is getting a significant portion of the planned reconstruction,
especially since it is the largest terminal, and the most centrally located and convenient.
The terminal is getting completely redeveloped, although it’s being done in parts so as
not to have to shut down the whole terminal at the same time.
The first part of the new Terminal B, the eastern concourse, has already been finished
and opened in December of 2018. It includes 18 gates and is almost 250 thousand square
feet in size, featuring a park area inspired by New York’s parks, and a very modern design.
The new parking garage for terminal B is also complete and was opened in early 2017. With
seven levels and more than 1million square feet of parking area, the parkade contains
3129 parking spaces, ten EV charging stations with future provision of up to 600 which we
find more than a little disappointing in 2020, and is connected by a pedestrian walkway to
the departures area of terminal B.
Terminal C and D on the other hand will also be replaced by a brand new Terminal C to act
as Delta’s new integrated hub. The new terminal will have 37 gates, and it’ll feature 4
wider concourses connected to a central lobby and headhouse, more concession space, and
dual taxi lanes between concourses for more efficiency.
The first part of Terminal C to open is Concourse G, which began operations in October of 2019
with 7 new gates. The next step for Terminal C is to demolish more of the existing terminal
to make space for the new one.
And finally, the last piece of the terminal renovation puzzle is the Central Hall, which
aims to connect terminal B and C via a large walkway and hall. It’ll go right overtop
the new Parking Garage at Terminal C, and connect directly to Terminal B’s center hub.
Besides all the terminal reconstruction, the other part of the future of LaGuardia Airport
that’ll make it a much more pleasant place to fly in or out at is AirTrain LGA, a 1.5
mile or 2.4 kilometer long people mover that will create a rail link between the airport
and the rest of the public transit system. Inspired by AirTrain JFK, and AirTrain Newark
the train will make two stops on airport grounds, then travel along the Grand Central Parkway
to arrive at the mets-Willets Point station, where passengers will be able to get on the
New York Subway’s 7 trains, and also onto the Long Island Rail Road via a passenger
bridge. The trip itself will take 6 min, and the LIRR will take 20 minutes to travel to
Manhattan. Construction will begin sometime this year, which will include a complete rebuild
of the Mets-Willets Point station that may introduce ancillary airport functions at the
station such as parking and car rentals, with the scheduled opening date in 2022. The project
has unfortunately received criticism though, particularly from nearby residents worried
about disruption, and from critics regarding the indirect route that may not even be an
improvement over existing options. Nevertheless, a rail connection will provide much more comfort
over the current bus services, and definitely elevates the state of public transit here
at LaGuardia.
Alright guys, so this is what LaGuardia Airport will look like in just a few years, with the
redevelopment plan that started in 2016 making some great progress and inching closer to
completion. We can’t wait to see the complete transformation, and the change in public view
that this project will bring, and we’re sure this will bring in a new wave of love
and appreciation for the airport.
If you enjoyed this video, leave a like, subscribe, and let us know down in the comments what
you’re most excited for in the future of LGA, and what airport you would like us to
cover next in our Airport Future series. Follow us on Twitter and Instagram, and support us
on Patreon and Ko-fi if you would like to help us keep doing what we do. Thanks for
watching, and we’ll see you in the next one!
[Music]