NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WTVF) — Nashville International Airport is launching a $40 million renovation project to expand its terminal entrance areas and prepare for unprecedented growth.
The Metropolitan Nashville Airport Authority announced the "Central Core Enhancement" will begin June 1, 2026, with an expected completion date of December 2027. The project aims to streamline terminal access and ease congestion as the airport's passenger volume has more than doubled in the past 10 years.
"You can’t afford to wait," Doug Kreulen, president and CEO of the Metropolitan Nashville Airport Authority, said in an exclusive interview.
The renovation will require the main section of escalators, elevators, and the sky bridge to close for a year and a half. "You’re going to see some changes, and we think we’ve thought through everything," Kreulen said.
The project will increase the number of escalators from six to 16, along with adding a landing on Level 4. It will also add a third elevator and replace the two existing elevators with upgraded, bigger, and faster machinery to double overall capacity.
With the center escalators and elevators closing temporarily, travelers will still be able to use escalators and elevators on the left and the right to access upper levels.
The airport is implementing a communications plan that includes additional staff to guide travelers, enhanced signage, and updates on social media and its website to help travelers navigate. "It’s a flow thing, try to keep them moving as fast as possible," Kreulen said.
The most recent terminal renovation was completed three years ago, but revised projections show the airport needs to prepare for more people. A 2016 forecast originally projected 30 million travelers in the next decade, but the airport now expects 40 million by the year 2038, including 3.8 million during a peak month. "When we started this journey in 2018 -- surely Nashville can’t stay this hot? We’re still hot, and that’s when we designed this to happen. Because we had to raise the bar from 30 million to 40 million," Kreulen said.
Adding 10 million new passengers will result in more cars on the road. Kreulen noted the airport has a relationship with the Tennessee Department of Transportation and that traffic flow remains a major priority.
Upgrading the main terminal will buy the airport time and capacity to construct a proposed second terminal along Donelson Pike as Nashville International continues to rapidly grow. Kreulen agreed that the current project serves as an insurance plan to bridge the gap until future leaders can explore building the second terminal. "What we are building will also go to 40 million passengers at higher levels of service than where we are today," Kreulen said.
During construction, the Central Core atrium art installation, "The Unscalable Rampart of Time" by Jacob Hashimoto, will be removed. It will be reconfigured and returned with a smaller footprint when the project is complete, with Hashimoto's oversight.
Funding for the project comes from bonds, federal and state aviation grants, Passenger Facility Charges, and other airport funds, with no local tax dollars used.
Do you have more information about this story? You can email me at Chris.Davis@NewsChannel5.com.
Here’s a story offering a great example of how a common cause, and a little creativity, can “intersect” to improve quality of life. Our South Nashville reporter Patsy Montesinos shares how some neighbors decided to take action, following the tragic death of a 77-year-old in a hit-and-run along Antioch Pike earlier this year. See how they used “tactical urbanism” to make the area a little safer for all.
- Rhori Johnston
