The project should give airlines additional capacity at one of the primary airports serving the New York and New Jersey meetings market. Max Maximov for Adobe Stock
Newark Liberty International Airport’s Terminal A is expanding again, with new gates and passenger amenities planned as the facility works to accommodate growing demand.
The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey Board of Commissioners has authorized $110 million for two projects at the award-winning terminal, which underwent a major redevelopment that was completed in 2023. The new Terminal A was designed to accommodate approximately 13 million passengers annually, but — according to the American Journal of Transportation — demand already has well exceeded those projections, with approximately 18 million passengers using the terminal in 2024.
The latest projects will expand Terminal A by approximately 25,000 square feet and add a total of eight new gates.
More gates and passenger amenities
The first project, an expansion of the terminal’s southern end, will add two common-use gates and adjacent seating areas, as well as men’s, women’s and all-gender restrooms, and grab-and-go concessions. The project is expected to be completed in 2029.
A northern expansion will follow, adding another six gates and opening in phases beginning in 2030.
Together, the projects are expected to generate significant economic activity. The southern expansion should support $76.6 million in wages and $173 million in economic activity, including indirect and induced effects. Initial planning for the northern expansion is expected to account for another $7.7 million in wages and $17.3 million in economic activity.
A larger overhaul at Newark
The Terminal A projects are one piece of a much broader transformation underway at Newark Liberty, changes that ultimately could make it easier for meeting attendees to travel to and from the surrounding region.
Terminal B is slated to be replaced with an entirely new facility, while Terminal C, too, is set for upgrades. Roadways are being reconfigured, and a new $3.5 billion AirTrain is expected to begin operating in 2030. The airport also is pursuing changes to its taxiway and roadway networks with the intention of easing congestion and improving the passenger experience from curb to gate.
For planners bringing groups through Newark in the coming years, however, those improvements also mean navigating an airport undergoing significant construction. The Federal Aviation Administration and Port Authority are coordinating on the projects with the goal of keeping airport operations moving during the work.
“These expansions at Terminal A are a critical step in our larger plan to overhaul and modernize Newark Liberty so it can earn its place alongside our other lauded redevelopments at LaGuardia and JFK,” said Port Authority executive director Kathryn Garcia. “These new gates, along with a new, world-class Terminal B, a modern, reliable AirTrain system, and redesigned roadway and taxiway networks will make for a wholly transformed passenger experience from curb to gate for Newark travelers.”