GSP Airport to add two new boarding bridges, parking garage, possible hotel? What to know.

Arrivals and departures to the main terminal at Greenville Spartanburg International Airport are currently congested with traffic cones, construction workers, and alternative road routes. The dual-county airport is expected to see improvement projects that last through 2026. Although markers, machinery, and manpower fill the airport’s pathway today, the infrastructure being installed is a direct response to its busiest year. Airport officials say nearly 2.9 million passengers will travel through GSP Airport in 2024.

Current Roadway Improvement Project

Since their terminal roadway improvement project began in January of 2023, procurement and weather delays have caused a slight adjustment to the projected finish into the second quarter of 2025. Yet, a new 1,500-space parking structure, two new boarding bridges on Concourse A and B, which could send out around 100 more flights per week, and a possible hotel are in the works at the expanding airport.

Why is GSP Airport growing?

According to Tiffany Cherry, communications manager at GSP Airport, in May 2024, the Upstate-based airport experienced its highest passenger total in history, as more than 266,000 people traveled through it. The reported 20-percent increase in traffic at the airport has also been the highest in GSP Airport history, mainly due to the growth in population to the Upstate area and the arrival of Avelo Airlines and Breeze Airways, which have added more than eight routes and increased flight frequencies to the Northeast, Southeast, and western cities like Los Angeles.

New Parking Structure C and revisions to Parking Structure A to come

In February 2024, GSP Airport broke ground on a two-year parking structure project with 1,500 parking spaces evenly split between car rental and public parking, with 750 dedicated to each. Garage C Parking will open in the first quarter of 2026 and will cost around $97 million, according to Tyra.

Two new boarding bridges to come to GSP Airport, adding up to 14 flights per day

By the end of 2024, Concourse A and B will receive a new boarding bridge, allowing two additional docked planes to onboard and offload passengers. Construction will begin this fall, and the bridge will be completed by the end of 2024. The addition of the two boarding bridges will cost around $5 million. It will be paid through the passenger facility fee — where every ticket sold at GSP Airport collects $4.50, which funds projects that increase capacity or security structure on the premises. The addition will allow 70 to 90-seat airplanes the option to have five-to-seven additional flights per day at GSP Airport and increase the total number of boarding bridges to 15 between the two concourses.

Could there eventually be a hotel at GSP Airport?

Just before the pandemic in 2020, discussions began at GSP Airport about the possibilities of an airport and what added features could aid the airport campus. Shortly after, discussions began for Garage C Parking, yet a hotel is still on the list of improvements to consider adding to GSP Airport and finding the right partners to build.