Auckland Airport’s international terminal transport system has experienced the biggest change in its nearly 50-year history with the opening of the Transport Hub ground floor. Travellers heading for the international terminal now experience the brand-new facility when they pull up to more than 320m of new undercover kerbside drop off and pick up – a 200% boost in space on what was previously available out front of the terminal. Construction continues, with parking levels above opening late-2024.
Replacing the old 1977 international terminal ground-level car park, the ground floor of the Transport Hub covers over 14,000sqm with separate lanes for public and commercial traffic creating an efficient and modern arrival and departure experience for those using public transport and scheduled buses, being dropped off or picked up by friends and family, or being dropped off by taxis, rideshares and shuttles.
Directly alongside the Transport Hub, new office spaces for the airport’s operational teams and partner organisations are under construction. A 1.2-megawatt rooftop solar array will help power the office building and the EV charging available in the car park.
Auckland Airport Chief Executive, Carrie Hurihanganui, said the Transport Hub creates an easier, efficient and more welcoming arrival and departure point for international travellers, and in the future, domestic customers of the new integrated domestic terminal. “The drop-off and pick-up lanes, designed to handle the 650 vehicles an hour expected at peak, are an important step towards a new integrated domestic terminal. This is creating the capacity to manage future vehicle volumes with allowance for future mass rapid transit right alongside.”
Around the Transport Hub, pedestrian walkways and landscaping showcasing native planting, including mature pōhutukawa relocated from the surrounding construction sites, create spaces with a unique feel of Aotearoa New Zealand. Five 25,000-litre rainwater tanks will provide non-potable water for the office and Transport Hub, plus irrigation for planted areas.
“We’re thrilled to be opening the first stage less than two years after starting work on the site,” said Hurihanganui. “This was the first of our major infrastructure projects to get underway once the borders reopened. Post-pandemic there was a window of opportunity while international travel was rebuilding to complete a project of this scale while minimising disruption. We do recognise that car parking was less convenient for a period, so we thank people for their patience and understanding during the Transport Hub construction. We reckon the ease and convenience the Transport Hub delivers will be absolutely worth it.”
