PITTSBURGH — Say what you will about Pittsburgh International Airport’s 33-year-old landside terminal — it’s dark, quirky and no longer considered fit for purpose now that O&D traffic is PIT’s main bread and butter — the facility is nevertheless a hospitable place. That’s due in large part to the women and men who work there, and indeed the people who call PIT their home airport.
Pittsburghers are known for their warmth and friendliness. That strength of character was evident to this journalist last week when I flew American Airlines roundtrip between PIT and Dallas Fort Worth International Airport. Even amid a scrum at the main security checkpoint, there was, as ever, a sense of camaraderie among passengers and TSA agents — a “we’re in it together” spirit that is edifying to observe. I reckon the agents at PIT are the friendliest in the nation.
But while a neighborly attitude can go a long way to ensuring a positive passenger experience, it can only gloss over the defects of an inadequate terminal building for so long. And so, as PIT prepares to open its gleaming new $1.7 billion terminal before the Thanksgiving holiday, the excitement from management, airlines, travelers, airport employees, and indeed federal employees is palpable — even in the face of a government shutdown.
“I’m always impressed with the TSA and the Customs and Border Protection, and the Air Traffic Control. Everybody who works at this airport for the federal government loves working here. That’s just a fact,” said Pittsburgh International Airport CEO Christina Cassotis.
“And the TSA agents, despite not being paid, are out there trialing that [new screening] equipment and participating with us all the way through. They are very excited. People feel proud and I think you’re going to see it.”
Cassotis is confident that the convivial atmosphere for which PIT is known will remain in play when the new landside terminal opens. “That’s what makes Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh; that’s what we’re trying to institutionalize,” she told Runway Girl Network.
Designed to be inherently intuitive to navigate, PIT’s new terminal is “made for everybody, and that’s what I really care about. I really care that it works for the people who… make us an airport,” she said, adding:
Passengers and airlines, that’s what makes us an airport, as opposed to a big amount of land that you could put stuff on. So we have to make sure that this is going to work for passengers. I back out and say, ‘well, how do we make sure passengers are going to get the best service?’ We have to take care of staff. I mean, I know that’s a big, radical concept, but it is sort of back to [Southwest Airlines co-founder] Herb Kelleher, right? Take care of your staff, they take care of your passengers, and they take care of your shareholders. And I subscribe to that.
…And let’s face it, this is an industry that is struggling to attract and retain talent, so let’s make it the kind of place people feel like, ‘I want to work here. I want a career in this.’
From early in the development process, airport employees and federal workers were brought along on the journey, the PIT CEO noted.
“They know where they’re going to park. They know where they’re going to badge in. They know where their new offices are. We have been facilitating operational readiness and transition for years.”
Designed by a collaboration between Gensler and HDR in association with Spain’s luis vidal + architects, and situated much closer to the existing airside terminal, the new landside terminal consolidates check-in, ticketing, security and baggage operations into one connected, three-level facility whose ‘wow factor’ starts at the curb.
I toured the space while technicians were still putting the finishing touches on various elements, and polishing structures to a high shine. But despite the presence of vacuums and other equipment, PIT’s new terminal was awe-inspiring.
Based on biophilic design, the terminal draws inspiration from nature including the rolling hills, beautiful trees and starry nights of Western Pennsylvania.
With 100,000 square feet of glass around the building, natural light streams in from the high ceilings and many windows.
American Airlines and Southwest Airlines are PIT’s biggest tenants so they were given first pick when choosing their check-in stations, opting for the spaces nearest to security.
Other legacy airlines and a raft of low-cost and ultra-low-cost carriers serve Pittsburgh airport, but I was tickled to see British Airways’ counters sitting alongside those of Allegiant, an egalitarian approach that speaks volumes about what makes PIT special.
Artistic ‘easter eggs’ can be spotted throughout the space, whether hanging from the ceiling or embedded into the terrazzo floor.
Surprise and delight moments can also be found in virtually every corner; even the restrooms serve as a canvas for local artists.
So too do the baggage carousels, atop which one finds a gallery of hand-carved sculptures.
Whereas the metal tree columns throughout the airport serve structural and aesthetic purposes, here we see their sprouting “seeds.”
Prominent in Pittsburgh’s iconic black and gold colors, signage throughout the terminal features large font to enhance accessibility for everyone.
PIT has also tweaked the color of the font on its displays to aid color-blind passengers, though, predictably, my camera didn’t capture the colors as I saw them.
Outside of being objectively beautiful, the undulating roof aids with wayfinding.
Towering when you enter the lobby, the roof narrows and slopes gently down as you near the security checkpoint, intuitively guiding passengers.
In a thrilling addition, multiple outdoor terraces — two pre-security, two post-security with all passengers welcome — are presently being landscaped.
Checkpoints can often be sterile affairs, but the signature tree-like columns found in PIT’s new terminal ensure that the nature theme continues even at security.
And new scanning technology means that laptops, tablets and liquids can blessedly remain in carryon bags.
In stark contrast to the existing landside terminal which connects passengers to the airside terminal via a ‘love it or hate it’ tram, the new terminal is attached to the airside terminal via a connector pedestrian bridge and tunnel.
The tunnel is inspired by Pittsburgh’s famous Fort Pitt Tunnel which serves as the gateway to spectacular views of the city’s skyline. Though it was closed during our tour, we managed to catch a glimpse of it.
Arrivals, too, impresses, with its vast space, a meet and greet area for friends and family, and the centrally-located Cafe Conmigo. The cafe is sure to become a hub of activity in its own right, positioned beneath the “Pittsburgh” kinetic mobile, a transplant from the current terminal.
Importantly, luggage will also have a much shorter travel time to baggage claim than in the past. That’s because a new state-of-the-art baggage handling system decreases the conveyor belt system from eight to three miles.
There are also instagrammable stations dotted throughout the facility.
Pittsburgh International Airport has already stress-tested the new terminal with two trial runs involving the traveling public.
“92% of the comments were ‘good’ to ‘great,'” noted Cassotis of the feedback. And the rest of the comments involve items that can be easily addressed.
With the “big stuff” already taken care of, including ticket counters, security and baggage claim, not to mention a new 6,000-space parking garage across the street — accessible from the new terminal via a covered bridge — “we now get to sweat the small stuff,” she said. “And I think that that is a luxury, and that has a lot to do with how we architected the feedback loop from the beginning.”
The airside terminal is also being modernized with remodeled gate areas, refreshed restrooms and new concessions.
Cassotis has spent the last decade working to transform travel at PIT. Now, it’s nearly time to take off the hard hats and neon vests.
“I feel like people here understand that this is something really special, and we’re supported by a community that understands it’s really special, and we have partnered with an industry who has helped us get here,” Cassotis said.
“That’s the part that I’m just really excited about is it works, and it’s not just okay. We needed to update it. We transformed it, and that’s why I’m excited to get operating as quickly as possible, because we’re ready.”
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