In a new installment of Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) funds, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has awarded $970 million to fund projects at 125 airports, with most of the projects located at or around terminals and related facilities.
The grant awards, which the FAA announced on Oct. 24, include projects in 46 states, Guam and Palau. The funds come from the IIJA-created Airport Terminals Program.
According to FAA, the new group of projects will include baggage systems, expanded security checkpoints, and other terminal-related improvements.
The largest grants in the latest round are $40 million to Florida’s Tampa International Airport and $40 million to Washington Dulles International Airport in Virginia.
The Tampa project includes connecting the airport’s Terminal D with the main terminal, via an automated people mover, according to an FAA summary.
The grant to Dulles will help fund construction of a new, 14-gate, 400,000-sq-ft terminal that will provide a direct link to the Dulles Aerotrain and an indirect connection to the regional Metrorail system.
Other large grants on the list of winners include: $35 million to Phoenix Sky Harbor International for upgrades to the central utility plant and $35 million to Miami International in Florida, to fund two of the six gates at the airport’s new Concourse K. The project includes passenger-boarding bridges and a baggage handling system.
U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg said in a statement that the grants will help to make airport terminal operations "safer, more accessible and more convenient for travelers.”
The IIJA includes $5 billion over five years for the terminal program.