Resizing the Runway
Pittsburgh is reimagining its airport for the next era of travel, and the region
Pittsburgh International Airport is shedding its hub-era legacy and building a terminal for today’s travelers. The $1.57 billion project is a case study in rightsizing, resilience, and regional pride.
PITTSBURGH—If you've flown through Pittsburgh International Airport in the last few years, you've likely sensed a disconnect between its scale and its current purpose. Wide corridors echo with fewer footsteps than they once did. An underground people-mover shuttles passengers between terminals originally designed for an airline hub that no longer exists. The entire facility, once futuristic in its distinctive post-modern style, now feels like a relic of a bygone era of aviation. But that’s about to change.
Pittsburgh is in the final stages of a $1.57 billion reimagining of its airport, which is a deliberate “rightsizing” of a facility built for a model of air travel that no longer exists here. The project eliminates inefficiencies, focuses on the passenger experience, and positions the region for growth in a changing economic landscape. And it's doing so without using a single dollar of local tax revenue.
Built for Yesterday, Reimagined for Tomorrow
When Pittsburgh International Airport (PIT) opened its state-of-the-art midfield terminal in 1992, it was a marvel, built primarily to serve as a hub for US Airways. At its peak, 80% of passengers at PIT were connecting through the airport, not starting or ending their trips there. Enough land was purchased to double the airport's size, if needed.
Then came airline consolidation. US Airways closed its hub operations in Pittsburgh in the mid-2000s, and the airport's traffic collapsed. Today, more than 95% of passengers at PIT are origin-and-destination travelers, not connectors. And yet, the infrastructure remained built for connections—a disjointed, two-building setup with an eight-mile baggage system, a half-mile people mover, and energy-intensive operations.
In 2017, the Allegheny County Airport Authority announced a plan to construct a new, consolidated landside terminal, directly connected to the existing airside concourses, eliminating the costly tram, simplifying baggage operations, and dramatically improving the passenger experience. As then-Allegheny County Executive Rich Fitzgerald put it: “The current airport finds itself built for the past. This new terminal will make the airport more efficient, provide an enhanced customer experience, and be even more cost-competitive to airlines. This is a win-win for our region.”
Strategic Efficiency: The Business Case for Rightsizing
The Terminal Modernization Program is more than just a glow-up. It’s a long-term cost-cutting strategy with real savings. By eliminating the people mover and consolidating groundside and airside operations, the airport anticipates saving more than $23 million annually in operating costs. That includes:
$4.5 million annually from retiring the train.
$2 million in energy and maintenance savings from a streamlined, modern baggage system.
Additional savings from consolidated staffing, reduced utility usage, and simplified maintenance.
“This project reduces our costs,” said Paul Hoback, the Airport Authority’s Chief Development Officer. “Not only that, it’s improving the passenger experience.”
The new terminal will also improve passenger flow. Currently, getting from the curb to the gate can involve multiple level changes and a ride on the underground tram. The redesigned facility will halve that journey time. And for international arrivals, the time from plane to curb will be reduced by more than 60%.
For travelers, that means a smoother journey. For the airport, that means more satisfied passengers and more opportunities for revenue from shops, restaurants, and parking.
Funded Without Local Taxes
A project of this scale could easily become a political flashpoint, especially if taxpayers were asked to foot the bill. But Pittsburgh has managed to avoid that entirely.
The project is being funded through a combination of:
Airport revenue bonds, backed by future airline fees, parking, and concessions.
Federal infrastructure grants, including $28.8 million from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law.
Passenger Facility Charges (PFCs) and Customer Facility Charges (CFCs) on rentals and tickets.
At every stage, airlines have had a seat at the table, and they’ve supported the plan. In March 2021, at the height of COVID-era uncertainty, American Airlines and others unanimously approved the funding strategy and design revisions.
“Right-sizing and modernizing PIT is the right path forward,” said Patrick Bowes, former chair of PIT’s Airline Affairs Committee. “It’s doing the right thing for this airport, the airlines, and all of our customers.”
Such alignment between public officials, the private sector, and infrastructure planners is rare these days. And it speaks volumes about the long-term value of this investment.
More Than Steel and Glass
If the previous terminal was a monument to the Jet Age, the new terminal is a celebration of place. The design draws inspiration from the rolling hills of Western Pennsylvania, the bridges of Pittsburgh, and the surrounding forests. Tree-like columns hold up a wooden ceiling that evokes the region’s natural canopy. Floor-to-ceiling glass walls allow natural light to flood in. Outdoor terraces provide fresh air and open views.
“We’re building Pittsburgh’s airport,” said Airport Authority CEO Christina Cassotis. “One that’s optimized for the needs of the local passenger and today’s aviation environment… a facility that is truly built by Pittsburghers, for Pittsburghers.”
It’s also designed for flexibility. The new terminal includes a 4,300-space parking garage and an integrated rental car center. It’s wired for future technology and built to LEED Silver standards, with a solar-powered microgrid that already offsets more than $1 million in annual electricity costs.
Even during the COVID-19 pandemic, planners found that their original design held up. With wide-open spaces, touchless systems, and robust air filtration, the terminal was already well-positioned to meet post-pandemic travel needs.
How It Compares Nationally
Pittsburgh isn’t the only mid-sized airport rethinking its infrastructure. Other formerly hub-dominated airports, like Memphis and Cleveland, have also downsized to match current demand.
Memphis, for example, consolidated its operations into a single, renovated concourse for approximately $245 million. Cleveland mothballed an entire concourse after United pulled out in 2014, and is now planning a multi-billion-dollar rebuild. Kansas City, meanwhile, recently opened a $1.5 billion new terminal to replace outdated 1970s facilities.
What makes Pittsburgh’s approach different is the balance it strikes. It retains functional parts of the existing infrastructure (like the airside concourses) but eliminates redundancies that no longer make sense. It’s neither a patchwork renovation nor a complete teardown. It’s strategic, efficient, and adapted to its new role as an origin-and-destination airport with global aspirations.
The airport is both a literal and symbolic gateway to that future. With construction now more than 80% complete, the new terminal is scheduled to open this fall.
For Pittsburghers—and for anyone watching how mid-sized cities can rethink their infrastructure for the next generation—the new airport is a case study in vision, collaboration, and what happens when we stop clinging to the past and start building for the future.
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Excellent story, Bradley. It's great to read about a community being smart and aligned with the times. Hopefully, this will be a model and offer encouragement for other communities to do the same for airports and other infrastructure projects as well.