Construction on the departures drop-off loop at the Edmonton International Airport is ahead of schedule and officials with YEG believe the area should be open again for passengers by the fall.
Construction on the departures roadway on Level 2 of the airport started last September. The $32-million “life-cycle replacement project” includes a resurfaced roadway and a new ramp.
The project also includes aesthetic improvements, increased accessibility, added safety features such as bollards in front of the terminal and improved traffic flow as the exit ramp will be expanded from one to two lanes.
The design team brought in elements of Edmonton’s River Valley to improve its curb appeal.
Officials admit the project hasn’t been totally straightforward.
“The biggest challenge that we had was trying to figure out how we actually execute the project,” said Peter Agnew, VP of infrastructure, facilities and airside operations at YEG.
“The technical specifications is pretty straight forward, but how do we move all of the passengers that currently come to our terminal 500 metres outside our parkade?
“That was a big challenge in coming up with that plan. It’s also a live operation here. We are building a new road above a live terminal right now. So we have shops below us, we have people walking below us. So there are pretty big barriers to doing this project.”
While construction is underway, the departures road is closed to traffic. The arrivals road on the ground level of the airport remains open to commercial vehicles and those with mobility issues.
Since September, a temporary passenger pickup and drop-off area has been set up just east of the Easy Parkade. Walking to and from the temporary area and the airport adds about a three- to five-minute walk to passengers’ trips. A shuttle was set up during the winter months.
“We have had amazing support from our airport community and passengers have been very patient with it,” Agnew said of the temporary drop-off/pickup zone.
“The temporary infrastructure has worked out really, really well. So the internal team is just analyzing what can we do to maybe utilize that infrastructure moving forward? No decisions have been made as of yet but we’re still looking into that.”
Officials said Tuesday upgrades to the arrivals area will be coming sometime in the future, likely in about two to three years.
On any given day, upwards of 10,000 passengers pass through the doors of YEG.
Agnew said an exact opening date is still to be determined, but he’s confident in the fall timeline.
Construction on the Edmonton International Airport’s departures roadway Tuesday, June 11, 2024.
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