CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Charlotte Douglas International Airport continues to evolve, and after the Labor Day weekend came to a close, some more major changes began.
As part of CLT's Terminal Lobby Expansion project, beginning Sept. 5, Checkpoint C closed for construction of Checkpoint 2, and TSA PreCheck was moved to Checkpoint A. Standard screen will stay at Checkpoints 1 and E. Checkpoint E will eventually be renamed Checkpoint 3.
Also after Labor Day weekend, 11 of the 24 new American Airlines ticket counters, which are located between Doors 2 and 3 in the center of the Terminal Lobby, will open. The rest are due to open in October.
Once CLT's Terminal Lobby Expansion project is finished, Checkpoints 1, 2 and 3 will have more total lanes than before and "enhanced equipment for more efficient screening," according to airport officials.
The ongoing Destination CLT project is updating the airport so it can keep up with Charlotte's growth in the future.
Charlotte Douglas Airport is in the process of transforming its terminal built back in 1982, to accommodate 2.8 million travelers a year. Officials say this year, through June, the airport has already welcomed over 29.5 million passengers. That’s 15% higher than the same period last year. The expansion is necessary to meet rapid growth.
“The expansion is going to allow us to create three highly efficient state-of-the-art security checkpoints, reconfigure all of the ticket counters, adds new baggage claim carousels,” Chief Infrastructure Officer Jack Christine said.
This comes after two new skybridges opened in late July that connect the terminal lobby to hourly parking and rental car lots.
The skybridges, announced in September 2022, are part of the expansion project, complementing the existing underground walkways and offering streamlined pathways that bypass traffic for convenience.
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The skybridges opened on Wednesday, July 31. They are covered by the massive canopy that provides coverage for those picking up and dropping travelers at Charlotte's airport.
“Using the skybridges will bring you right to the mezzanine level,” Christine said. “You can see behind me you can see everything on this floor, you can see where checkpoints and where the ticket counter are.”
It is also a safer way to get to the terminal away from the roadway traffic.
Christine said without the added people walking across on the lower level, it would ease traffic congestion.
“People will still stop, pick up and drop off on those lanes, so there will still be traffic,” Christine explained. “It’s not like the traffic will go away but being able to efficiently move that traffic and not having to worry about customers crossing is the goal. That has always been the goal.”
Hotel and airport shuttles, rideshare, and curbside drop-off remain on the lower level.
The Charlotte Douglas website estimates that the $608 million Terminal Lobby Expansion project will be complete in fall 2025.
“We started in November of 2019, it’s been quite a while, but we knew it was going to be this long, and we are on schedule, on budget and we are working our way through it,” said Christine.
The ongoing construction at Charlotte Douglas has been a pain point for passengers during the busy summer travel season. That included the temporary relocation of American Airlines ticket counters. While the counters were covered by the canopy and fans were operating, many passengers complained about the heat and being exposed to the weather.