All flights will now operate out of the main Barbara Jordan Terminal starting Wednesday, April 1.<\/p>\n
AUSTIN, Texas \u2014 A major change is underway at Austin-Bergstrom International Airport (AUS) as the airport\u2019s South Terminal shuts down after years of service.<\/p>\n
Tuesday, March 31, marks the final day of operations for the terminal, which has housed Allegiant and Frontier Airlines since 2017. Starting Wednesday, both airlines will operate out of the airport\u2019s main Barbara Jordan Terminal.<\/p>\n
\nWhy the South Terminal is closing <\/p>\n
Airport officials said the closure is part of a long-term expansion plan.<\/p>\n
The South Terminal will be demolished to make room for new taxiways, which will support a future 26-gate concourse. Construction on those upgrades is already underway.<\/p>\n
\nWhat travelers need to know <\/p>\n
Passengers flying Allegiant or Frontier will now check in, go through security and board their flights at the main terminal.<\/p>\n
To handle the added traffic, the airport has made several upgrades, including:<\/p>\n
A new TSA Checkpoint 4 with four screening lanesTwo new ticket counters for the airlinesThree new gates on the west side of the terminal <\/p>\n
Airport leaders said the move will also streamline the travel experience by bringing all airlines under one roof.<\/p>\n
\u201cMarch is a crazy busy time at the airport. Summer is also really busy. So April presents kind of a \u2026 window of opportunity to move those operations,\u201d said AUS Deputy Chief Sam Haynes.<\/p>\n
\nWhat happens if you parked at the South Terminal? <\/p>\n
Travelers returning to Austin after departing from the South Terminal will arrive at the main terminal.<\/p>\n
Airport officials say shuttle buses will continue running between the terminals until all passengers are reunited with their vehicles.<\/p>\n
\nA busier airport than ever <\/p>\n
The change comes as AUS continues to see record passenger numbers.<\/p>\n
The airport was designed to handle about 15 million passengers per year, but in recent years, that number has exceeded 20 million.<\/p>\n
\nEnd of a unique travel experience <\/p>\n
The South Terminal offered a different, more laid-back experience compared to the main terminal \u2014 including quick parking access, smaller crowds and even outdoor boarding.<\/p>\n
Some travelers say they\u2019ll miss it.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt was easy, breezy \u2026 you could drink a beer, play cornhole and wait for your flight,\u201d said Starr Platt, who was waiting for her Frontier flight to Atlanta on Tuesday afternoon.<\/p>\n
Airport officials say they\u2019ve spent years planning the transition and have recently worked to spread awareness, including coordinating with rideshare companies to ensure smooth drop-offs and pickups at the main terminal.<\/p>\n
\nWhat’s next for South Terminal staff <\/p>\n
TSA and airline staff will all move to the main terminal.<\/p>\n
Airport officials say they\u2019ve worked multiple times with operations staff, who are managed by the company Clear Direct, to help them find new jobs.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe have connected with those employees multiple times, leading up to the closure, with members of our workforce development team to help connect them to opportunities at the Barbara Jordan terminal, both with the City and other on-airport employers,\u201d said spokesperson Samantha Rojas.<\/p>\n
Rojas said the airport has also connected concession operators and concession employees with similar resources.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"All flights will now operate out of the main Barbara Jordan Terminal starting Wednesday, April 1. AUSTIN, Texas…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":229508,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[11],"tags":[132,134,133],"class_list":{"0":"post-229507","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-austin","8":"tag-austin","9":"tag-austin-headlines","10":"tag-austin-news"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/229507","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=229507"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/229507\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/229508"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=229507"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=229507"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=229507"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}