This Week’s Highlights:
Crews Near Completion on Terminal 2 Security Checkpoint; Air Service Changes; Terminal 2 Strengthens Airport Infrastructure
RDU Airport, NC – This week’s highlights at Raleigh-Durham International Airport:
Construction Crews Put Final Touches Terminal 2 Security Checkpoint
Crews will complete the security screening checkpoint in Terminal 2 this week. The area will then be handed over to the Transportation Security Administration for installation of security screening equipment.
When Phase One of Terminal 2 opens this fall, the security checkpoint will feature space for seven lanes available for operation by the TSA. The TSA also plans to feature its self-select lane program, which allows travelers to select a lane customized to their pace.
Additional space has also been built adjacent to the security checkpoint to accommodate future changes in security screening requirements. Following the events of September 11, the federal government mandated major changes in security screening procedures. Many airports across the country were not designed for the new measures. The additional space in Terminal 2 will ensure the airport and the TSA can implement new security measures without impacting the passenger experience.
ExpressJet to End Commercial Branded Service
ExpressJet Airlines announced this week that due to high fuel costs it will end its branded commercial service effective September 2. The new airline launched service at RDU and other medium-sized airports in spring 2007. At the time, the airline offered 13 daily departures from RDU to six cities. In December of last year, ExpressJet began reducing its schedule. Today, the airline offers three daily flights from RDU: two to New Orleans and one to San Antonio.
As the result of rising fuel costs, other airlines have announced changes to their schedules at RDU and other airports. Today, 10 major airlines and 19 regional carriers offer 219 daily departures to more than 40 destinations. While some airlines have made minor changes to their flight schedules, demand for air travel in the Research Triangle Region remains strong. Airlines serving RDU have reported that their flights are more than 80 percent throughout the summer.
Construction of Terminal 2 Strengthens Airport Infrastructure
Airport Authority employees began plans for Terminal 2 six years ago this summer. A new passenger terminal had been in the works for nearly 20 years. The Terminal 2 project was adapted from a plan that exceeded $1 billion in cost and would have required the construction of temporary facilities while crews built a new terminal in the location of what is today Terminal A.
By replacing Terminal C, the Airport Authority is able to strengthen the airport infrastructure needed to meet current and future demand, while decreasing the cost of the original terminal development project by nearly half.
For more on the Terminal 2 project history, please visit RDU’s history pages.
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