Airport Authority Presents Terminal 1 Expansion Concept

Additional Gates to Accommodate More Flights, Passengers 

Airport Authority staff presented the Board of Directors information on a concept to add more gates at Terminal 1 to help RDU manage record growth and support more flight options. Staff also presented information on the construction of two additional security checkpoint lanes in Terminal 2. 

“Airports have to plan years in advance for major construction projects due to the time it takes to design and build multi-million dollar facilities,” said Michael Landguth, president and CEO of the Raleigh-Durham Airport Authority. “Adding more gates at Terminal 1 will allow RDU to continue supporting the region’s growth and demand for air service.” 

Terminal 1 Expansion 

Amid record-setting growth at RDU and the region’s increasing demand for air travel, the airport could need more gates in the next 10 years than it has currently planned for. The existing Terminal 1 expansion program includes the activation of four gates by April 2020, followed by the construction of four more, bringing the total to 13. Authority staff presented an alternative on Monday that would expand the terminal to 21 gates. 

Due to space constraints, the earliest RDU can build more gates at Terminal 2 is approximately 2028, when the new runway is operational, leaving Terminal 1 as the only feasible option for adding new gates in the immediate future. The 21-gate option was presented by staff as a potential alternative should the airport need more gates than initially anticipated over the next 10 years.

Vision 2040, the airport master plan that was approved in 2016, calls for the addition of gates based on airport growth projections. RDU has experienced double-digit growth over the past two years and the number of people flying through the airport has grown by nearly 30 percent since 2016. The Authority has to accelerate the construction of major projects, including additional terminal gates, to accommodate more passengers and flights. 

Terminal 2 Security Checkpoint Expansion 

The Board approved a $453,000 contract amendment to accelerate construction of two new security lanes at the TSA checkpoint in Terminal 2. The additional funding would allow multiple phases of the $6 million project to take place concurrently, with an estimated completion date of August or September 2020. RDU opened two new Terminal 2 checkpoint lanes in May of 2019 to expand checkpoint availability during the busiest times of day.