Major UK airport reveals £250million renovation – and it will make getting to your flight so much easier
A UK airport has revealed its multi-million pound renovation which is set to open to the public this month.
Passengers travelling to and from Gatwick Airport will find it much easier to get to their flight.
The £250million upgrade started in 2020, due to concerns of overcrowding on the platforms.
This also led to congestion using the escalators – so any passengers running late for their flight would find themselves stuck in long queues to get to the terminal.
The works include a new concourse above the platforms the size of eight tennis courts, and a new airport entrance, doubling the space for passengers.
Eight new escalators, five new lifts and four new stairways have also been created along with new information screens.
Not only will it ease crowds, but track upgrades will also improve train journey times, being five minutes quicker between London and the airport.
The renovations were due to the station no longer capable of handling the passenger numbers travelling to and from the airport.
More than 21 million people used the train station in 2019, which Network Rail said was more than the capacity it was created for.
Network Rail’s Sussex route director Lucy McAuliffe said: “The existing airport station was never designed for the growth and the demand of over 20 million passengers year using it.
“So what we’ve done is really invested in transforming the passenger experience here at the airport station, in order to unlock capacity, reduce congestion and just overall enhance passenger experience.”
Gatwick Airport’s CCO Jonathan Pollard said the changes would “dramatically improve” the experience for passengers.
The upgraded station will reopen to passengers from November 21.
It’s not the only UK airport to undergo a huge renovation project.
Leeds Bradford Airport has confirmed plans for an £100million upgrade project which includes a three-storey extension to the terminal, with more seating, restaurants and shops.
There will also be a larger baggage claim area and immigration hall.
The works are hoped to be finished by 2026.
And some UK airports are hoping to reopen after closing down years ago.
Manston Airport in Kent, which first opened in 1916, closed in 2014, but could soon reopen.
Despite being closed to the public, it has been used as a lorry park as well as a filming location for James Bond and Empire of Light.
Plymouth Airport, which closed back in 2011, hopes to relaunch flights.
And Doncaster Sheffield Airport, which closed back in November 2022, hopes to be able to reopen too.