It’s rare for me to post twice in the span of two days, but I caught this bit of news about the proposed redevelopment of Newark Airport, which is especially relevant to my current readership, given how many of you are based in and around New York!

1. I’m really… not a fan of Newark Liberty Intl. Airport
2. ‘Vision Plan’ goals
3. A totally rebuilt Terminal B; enhancements to Terminal C
4. A new taxiway layout
5. These efforts follow on massive redevelopments at LaGuardia and JFK
6. Summary

I’m really… not a fan of Newark Liberty Intl. Airport

I don’t make it a secret that I’m not a fan of Newark Airport. I’ve always found it awkwardly split arrivals/departures halls tremendously confusion. Granted, Terminal A just saw a major rebuild, and United’s Terminal C, once you pass security, is a fairly modern and pleasant experience. But Terminal B, from where I recently departed and arrived on my flight to Copenhagen, is a mess. I especially dislike the security checkpoint in the connector between departure hall and concourse rotunda, since you’re stuck in a small area with limited food and shopping options in a design that aged rather badly since its development in the seventies. Plus, the concourses get crowded with limited seating.

But behold! All that may be about to change as the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey has revealed its grand ‘Vision Plan’ for Newark Airport, designed by firms Arup and SOM. And if the agency gets what it wants, Newark may well end up becoming my preferred NYC airport! In the words of Port Authority Chairman Kevin O’Toole:

As the blueprint shows, we’re ready to take a top-to-bottom look at everything from terminals to roadways to taxiways as we build EWR into a best-in-class global gateway and position it to continue serving as a vital economic engine for New Jersey and the region.

It’s important to emphasize that, my own opinions on the airport aside, Newark Airport is indeed the primary aerial gateway for New Jersey – at least in the north, since you may argue that southern New Jersey has access to Philadelphia Intl. Airport. Be that as it may, For those in the larger Newark-Jersey City metro area, traveling to LaGuardia or JFK is a major hassle, so while a new and improved Newark Airport is of major benefit to NYC, it is of much more importance to the residents of New Jersey.

‘Vision Plan’ goals

Through presentations and a PDF guide on the Newark Vision Plan website, a set of goal has been delineated through a long process, in order to shape ideas and set goals for improvements to the airport through 2065. These goals are summarized as follows:

• Creating a memorable, locally driven, World Class Gateway for New Jersey
• Enabling long term economic growth and a high quality of life for local residents and the region
• Embedding sustainability in every element of the development plan
• Enabling multimodal access to the airport for both work and travel.
• Developing a feasible, phasable plan to minimize impact on airport operations.

So what may that lead to? Let’s have a look at some of the images that were released today.

A totally rebuilt Terminal B; enhancements to Terminal C

This, to me, is very exciting news. There is no guarantee that this will come to fruition as currently presented, but it’s nice to see the ambition. Like terminal A was knocked down and rebuilt from scratch, the port authority wants to give Terminal B the same treatment. They are looking to demolish the current terminal and rebuild it from scratch, in a design that will aesthetically fit that of Terminal A.

A large, redesigned departures hall can be seen in a style reminiscent of that of JFK’s Terminal 4, with a large roof sheltering the driveways. Further, on the airside there are two expansive concourses, as well as connector to Terminal A. Such airside connections are lacking in the current design, and are a major inconvenience for people that need to connect between United and its Star Alliance partners (the partners typically don’t depart from Terminal C). As such, the apparent lack of a connector in these plans between Terminals A and B is a little disappointing, but as I mentioned, these are early plans that are subject to change.

In terms of the updates to Terminal C, no info was given beyond ‘enhancing Terminal C to improve the customer experience‘. Because the airside portions of the terminal (past security) are actually not bad, I’m hoping this means that the landside portion (pre security) will be essentially rebuilt from the ground up.

A new taxiway layout

The current taxiway layout is ‘prone to delays’, according to the Port Authority. A redesigned taxiway layout that maximize efficiency should help remedy this. In the below photos you can sort of see some of that, with dual taxiways along and in-between the concourses. One of these would be for incoming traffic, whereas the other would be for outgoing traffic, like a two-way street.

These efforts follow on massive redevelopments at LaGuardia and JFK

As you may well know, EWR is not the only NYC airport to receive much-needed upgrades. In 2015 a major redevelopment of LaGuardia (LGA) was undertaken to transform what then-vice president Biden referred to as a ‘third world country’s airport’ into a worldclass facility. Then, several years ago, a similar redevelopment was started at JFK to enhance Terminal 4 and rebuild Terminals 1 and 7 from the ground up, with the latter disappearing forever, replaced by a new Terminal 6. As such, we are seeing a largescale effort by the Port Authority to revamp all major NYC airports.

Summary

Today the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey unveiled their ‘Vision Plan’ for largescale redevelopments at Newark Livery Intl. Airport, to evolve it from the current situation into a wordclass facility. Terminal B would be demolished and rebuilt from the ground up, and Terminal C should receive ‘enhancements’. Taxiways will be improved airside, and landside the road network will see substantial improvements to maximize efficiency on both sides of the terminal. I for one find this a very exciting plan and who knows – perhaps I will actually start preferring flying out of Newark!

What do you make of these plans? Let me know in the comments!