It’s official: Construction on LaGuardia Airport’s much-anticipated $4 billion revamp got underway today, with a groundbreaking that was attended by Governor Andrew Cuomo and Vice President Joe Biden. (Who, you’ll recall, sparked the whole thing by likening the experience of flying into LaGuardia to being in a third-world country—oh, Joe.) The renovation includes a complete overhaul of Terminal B, and will “transform LaGuardia Airport into a single, unified main terminal with expanded transportation access, significantly increased taxiway space and best-in-class passenger amenities,” per a release issued by the Governor’s office.
The groundbreaking also presented an opportunity to release new details on the revamp. Among them: The Q70 bus—currently one of the easier ways to get to and from the airport—will relaunch this summer as the “LaGuardia Link,” with a “distinctive new look designed to help customers and tourists quickly find their way.” It’ll also become a Select Bus Service route. There will also be 3,000 new parking spaces, and the whole thing will move a hair closer to Grand Central Parkway, a move that will reportedly “increase airport taxiways by more than two miles and reduce airport ground delays.” Neat.
“Today, we are not just breaking ground—we are building an entirely new LaGuardia and transforming it into a world-class transportation gateway for the 21st century,” Cuomo said in a statement. (Biden did not call it a BFD at the presser, but we like to think that he was thinking it.)
Credit: ny.curbed.com/
