MSP Airport Remodeling Amid Busy Travel Season
MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) -- Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport is getting ready for its busy summer travel season.
Airport officials say 100,000 people travel to and through MSP airport on a normal day, and a few things are making this summer a little more complicated.
Director of MSP Operations Phil Burke suggests travelers arrive early, saying the multi-year construction project could delay passengers' timelines.
"One of the things that we're doing is expanding the terminal to accommodate all the additional passenger growth, and it kind of sets us up for the next, hopefully, 50 years," Burke said. "But in the meantime, we're running an airport operation."
He says the busiest travel day of the year typically happens over the summer months, beating out any major holiday.
As for the busiest day of the week, Thursdays, Fridays, Sundays and Mondays are ones to avoid if possible. The most common departure times are between 5 a.m. – 9 a.m., and 2 p.m. – 4 p.m. are the busiest time for arrivals.
When those days and times are hard to avoid, Burke suggests travelers think backwards.
"So if you're dropping off during a busy departure time, drop off on the bag claim level and then come up one level," Burke said. "It's a great insider tip."
Making things more congested, Burke said that the number of people flying into and out of MSP Airport has never been higher, creating more foot and road traffic.