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YVR to accommodate more passengers with $9.1B expansion

VANCOUVER (NEWS 1130) – Vancouver International Airport (YVR) has broken ground on its $9.1 billion expansion as it gears up to welcome tens of thousands of additional passengers to BC.

Premier John Horgan and other stakeholders attended the ceremony to kick off the 20-year plan which consists of 75 major projects.

Airport staff say this is all in an effort to “to enhance the airport experience” at YVR, and improve the airport’s “competitive position as a world-class connecting hub.”

“We’re building the infrastructure needs to further connect our region, and we continue to add more services to more destinations,” Airport Authority CEO Craig Richmond said, adding that part of the expansion will open in two years. “Every new flight brings significant economic opportunities to our province.”

An expanded international terminal will open in 2020, with space for eight more wide-body aircraft. Other expansions include a new parkade, a rain water harvester, a GeoExchange heating system, and buses between terminals.

The work, Richmond adds, won’t impact how much passengers pay in Airport Improvement Fees.

“There’s no plans to change it from $20. And it’s actually $5 if you fly inside BC,” he said.

The airport is expanding for local customers.

Another project that just got underway is a new six-storey parkade, with a lighting system to indicate available stalls to help people find parking spots faster. It will house 2,200 new stalls, 10 per cent of which will be for electric vehicles.

 

 

YVR originally announced a $5.6-billion 2037 long-term plan a year ago, and according to Richmond, it is one of the fastest-growing airports in North America.

“It welcomed a record 24.2 million passengers in 2017 and is forecasting 32 million passengers by 2022,” a release said.

The expansion is also expected to move people and goods through the airport faster.

The projects are being funded through the airport’s “not-for-profit operating model”. YVR says none of the $9.1-billion has been funded by the government.

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