Port Authority approves $75M Terminal B

The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey approved $75 million on May 20 for near-term upgrades at Terminal B at Newark Liberty International Airport. The authorization is the first phase of a broader three-year, $200 million program in the agency’s 2026-2035 Capital Plan to keep the terminal operating until a replacement Terminal B opens in the mid-2030s. The agency said the work will focus on immediate infrastructure and passenger-facing improvements at the 53-year-old terminal. Newark’s Terminal B opened in 1973 and remains the airport’s oldest terminal. ### Why is the Port Authority spending on a terminal it plans to replace? The Port Authority said the $200 million program is intended to modernize and maintain Terminal B until a new terminal is built in the mid-2030s. The agency has already begun planning for that replacement: in October 2024, commissioners approved funding to start preliminary design and infrastructure planning for a new Terminal B as part of the airport’s broader EWR Vision Plan. (panynj.gov) The 2026-2035 Capital Plan, approved in December 2025, included funding for a new Terminal B as part of a wider overhaul of Newark Liberty, alongside a new AirTrain Newark and other airport projects. That means the current $75 million approval is not the replacement itself; it is interim work on the existing building. (panynj.gov) ### What exactly will the first $75 million pay for? The Port Authority said the initial $75 million will fund upgrades to gate areas, restrooms, elevators and escalators. The agency described the work as “near-term improvements” aimed at both infrastructure and customer experience. (panynj.gov) ROI-NJ and other local business outlets reported the action on May 22 after the board vote, citing the broader three-year, $200 million scope. NJ.com also reported that the terminal will receive improvements over three years under the plan approved by commissioners. ### How heavily used is Terminal B now? (panynj.gov) Terminal B was designed to serve about 6.8 million annual passengers, according to the Port Authority. In 2025, the terminal handled about 11.5 million passengers, the agency said. That gap helps explain why the agency is putting money into the current terminal even as it advances long-range replacement plans. (roi-nj.com) The Port Authority has described Terminal B as outmoded in prior planning documents tied to Newark Liberty’s redevelopment. ### How does this fit into Newark Liberty’s broader rebuild? Newark Liberty’s redevelopment has already produced a new Terminal A, while the next major projects include a replacement for Terminal B and a new AirTrain. The Port Authority’s capital plan framed those investments as part of a larger transformation of the airport into a modern international gateway. (panynj.gov) The current Terminal B program sits between those two timelines: immediate repairs and upgrades now, and a full replacement later. The Port Authority’s May 20 release said the first-phase work was approved as planning continues for the future terminal. (panynj.gov) ### What happens next? The Port Authority said the approved funding starts the first phase of a three-year, $200 million modernization program for the existing terminal. Future work under that program will proceed while the agency continues planning for a new Terminal B scheduled to open in the mid-2030s. (panynj.gov) The next public markers are likely to come through additional Port Authority board materials, capital-plan updates and project announcements tied to Newark Liberty’s EWR Vision Plan. The agency’s May 20 release and its earlier 2024 planning approval set out the current sequence: interim upgrades first, replacement-terminal planning after that. (panynj.gov)