Preview: Inside Pittsburgh Airport’s New State-of-the-Art Terminal

Out with the old and in with the 21st century at Pittsburgh International Airport (PIT).

That’s the strategy behind the major terminal redevelopment program underway at Pittsburgh’s once-bustling airport. The airport’s current terminal, originally considered somewhat revolutionary when it opened in 1992, is a shadow of its former self, at least in terms of the destinations it serves.

The current Pittsburgh International Airport (PIT) facility was designed primarily for hub operations. At the time, USAir (later renamed US Airways) had made Pittsburgh one of its primary bases. From PIT, US Airways could fly passengers to cities as far away as Frankfurt and as close as Latrobe, Pennsylvania.

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But US Airways dehubed the airport in 2004, and that hub status “will never return,” Christina Cassotis, CEO of the airport operator Allegheny County Airport Authority, told TPG in an interview. (Today, PIT is served by 15 airlines with 62 nonstop destinations on more than 170 peak-day departures.)

With no future as a hub, PIT had a choice. It could keep its current terminal structure with landside and airside operations split between two buildings connected by a nearly half-mile underground tunnel and a people mover. Or, it could innovate and become what airport officials envision as one of the most beautiful and passenger-friendly departure and destination airports in the country.

PIT chose the latter option and is now about a year away from opening the Terminal Modernization Program. (Cassotis told TPG he expects an official opening in the third quarter of 2025.)

The $1.57 billion TMP project includes a brand-new terminal that will serve as a centralized departure and arrivals hall, the largest single parking garage in Pennsylvania, and much more.

There’s a lot for passengers to be excited about, so join TPG for an exclusive tour of the TMP and read on to find out what travellers can expect once the work is completed next year.

Centralized departure and arrival hall

Assuming you’ve been to PIT before, you’ll probably be surprised when you arrive at the new departures area.

As you approach the new facility from the streets, your eyes will likely be dazzled by the gleaming new terminal.

Departing traffic will stop on the third level of the structure, which has a large overhanging ceiling to protect the disembarkation points from the elements. (This part of the TMP reminds me of the recently opened terminal at Kansas City International Airport (MCI).)

After being dropped off at the terminal, there will be three entrance vestibules for departures. Once inside, airport designers hope passengers will be impressed by the soaring ceilings that are shaped like rolling hills and provide plenty of natural light.

Nature is a key design theme for the new terminal (along with technology and community), and it will be on full display once you step inside. Earthy wood tones will cover the ceiling finishes, and the lights will supposedly resemble a starry constellation at night.

Additionally, the support beams that run from the ground to the ceiling are designed to resemble trees in the forests of western Pennsylvania.

Please note that passengers using ride-hailing services will be dropped off on Level 1 of the new facility, but express escalators will be available to transport them directly to check-in.

All floors in the new terminal are made of terrazzo, eliminating the old tiles of the existing structure, which were not designed for the diffusion of wheeled luggage.

While some new airports offer island check-in counters (such as Terminal B at New York City’s LaGuardia Airport (LGA)), PIT will retain its traditional counter check-in configuration.

Before heading to security, passengers will pass through the central concourse of the departures hall. This airy space spans both the departures and arrivals levels and will be marked by Alexander Calder’s 1958 sculpture that will hang from the ceiling (and was prominently displayed in the old terminal).

Renovated safety lanes

If you’ve recently passed through PIT in the morning, chances are you’ve waited in line for security. That’s because PIT was originally designed as a hub-and-spoke airport, with most passengers connecting into the facility after security.

However, with the move to an origin-destination model, PIT was unable to meet the demand for safety lanes.

Fortunately, the new terminal will have one centralized security area with 11 lanes. This includes Clear, TSA PreCheck, Family Security, Priority Security, and General Screening.

The sorting machines will be the latest Analogic models (also known as the famous slow blue machines).

After passing through security, you will find a large gathering area to collect your belongings (and your peace and quiet).

Here, you will also see floor-to-ceiling windows with outdoor observation decks on each side. Building on the theme of nature, PIT is planning four total outdoor observation areas: two airside and two landside.

While these terraces don’t offer spectacular views, they should provide a relaxing retreat from the hustle and bustle of the airport itself.

Paul Hoback, PIT’s development manager, told TPG that once completed, these bridges will be covered with grass, trees and other green spaces.

No more people movers

The current configuration of the PIT, with separate landside and airside buildings, means that passengers must use a people mover to move between the facilities.

However, the new departure and arrivals hall is under construction adjacent to the airside terminal. So instead of taking a people mover, it will be just a short walk through a tunnel (designed to resemble the city’s Fort Pitt Tunnel) to get to the airport’s central artery.

This will undoubtedly speed up curb-to-gate travel times, by as much as 50 percent, according to Hoback, and will also help increase the area available for concessions and retail stores. (In fact, PIT was once a game changer when it came to airside shopping. Before 9/11, the airport’s AirMall even attracted non-flying locals.)

So far, PIT has shared a list of 15 new retailers and restaurants set to open in the new terminal. More names are expected to be announced as leases are finalized, closer to the grand opening.

Faster arrivals

The centralized terminal not only eliminates the people mover for departures, but also speeds up the flow of incoming traffic. In the future, passengers will simply step off a short escalator and walk directly to the arrivals platform.

According to Hoback, this solution will reduce the time required to go from international arrivals to home pickup by 67%.

As PIT sought to design the facility for its community, the airport looked at data showing it has a large meet-and-greet population (friends and family who drive to the airport to pick up loved ones). To accommodate these pick-ups and serve as a steward for the local population, the arrival area will feature a variety of concessions and two outdoor bridges (similar to the airside ones discussed above).

There will be eight baggage claim areas on the arrivals level, all connected by a single baggage conveyor system at the rear of the airport.

This updated system is designed to handle baggage much more efficiently than the outdated system PIT uses today.

A completely new parking structure

When PIT was a hub, the airport needed to optimize the connection of travelers who were simply stopping in Pittsburgh on their way between two other cities. That meant that parking facilities for local traffic were largely an afterthought.

However, with the new PIT, parking has become a central tenet of the redevelopment project, so much so that, according to Hoback, the new terminal will house the largest parking lot in Pennsylvania.

It will be five levels high with 5,000 parking spaces. Car rental companies will be located on the first floor of the structure, eliminating the need to take a shuttle bus to a remote parking lot.

This new facility will be connected to the main terminal via a covered walkway and will have three times the number of covered parking spaces compared to the existing facilities.

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More updates coming to the gates

While much of the focus is on the departure and arrival experience, modernizing gate areas is also a key priority for Cassotis.

After all, “we don’t want the Jetsons to meet the Flintstones,” Cassotis said.

As part of the TMP project, the airport is renovating some gates, bathrooms and waiting areas in the existing terminal.

That said, much of the flooring and layout will remain exactly as it was when US Airways had a hub there.

That’s not necessarily bad news, since the airport’s X-shaped layout allows for quick access to any gate. But once you get past the new departure lounge, the high ceilings will give way to a structure designed for a bygone era.

It is hoped that PIT will continue to improve the boarding areas in the coming years.

In conclusion

Pittsburgh Airport’s new terminal couldn’t come soon enough. The airport is showing its age, especially now that it’s been more than 20 years since PIT was a hub for US Airways.

From the centralized security area to the high ceilings that flood the facility with tons of natural light, this terminal is completely different from the current one.

But the new terminal doesn’t just usher in a vastly improved passenger experience. It also helps usher in what PIT officials hope will be an era in which the facility becomes one of the nation’s premier midsize airports.

PIT has already had some success in courting new airlines, notably British Airways to London and Icelandair to Reykjavik. It also handled just under 10 million passengers last year.

It will also soon have a sleek new terminal, worthy of praise from airports across the country. It’s the start of a new chapter for PIT and I, for one, can’t wait to see what happens next.

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