Projects planned to enhance passengers’ experience, airport CEO says
For the month of July, passenger traffic at the Sarasota Bradenton International Airport (SRQ) totaled 326,947, the airport has reported.
That total was 424% higher than the figure for July 2020, when the COVID-19 pandemic resulted in sharply reduced travel, an airport news release notes. Last July, the airport served only 62,405 passengers, the release says.
Further, the passenger total for this July was 122% higher than the pre-COVID-19 level of 147,068 in July 2019, the release adds.
Moreover, the release points out, the number of passengers in July was up 4.48%, compared to the June count.
“It is exciting to see us break another all-time record for the most passengers carried in a month at SRQ,” Frederick “Rick” Piccolo, president and CEO of Sarasota Bradenton International Airport, said in the release.
“With the rapid growth of passenger traffic at our airport,” Piccolo added, “we continue to make improvements to ensure our passengers receive the best experience possible while traveling. In April, we expanded our checkpoint from 4 to 5 lanes and a 6th screening lane is expected to be added before Thanksgiving,” he noted in the release.
“Last month,” Piccolo continued, “we brought online two new 100,000-gallon jet fuel tanks, tripling our fuel storage capacity. We also expanded our long-term parking lot by 140 spaces. Over the next couple of months, we plan to pave our overflow parking lot and add an additional lot to prepare us for the upcoming holidays and our peak season.”
Among other projects under design, he pointed out, are a new ground transportation area, improved concessions, a consolidated rental car facility for the cleaning and fueling of vehicles, and another ground-level terminal with five or more gates for parked aircraft.
“As the airport and community continue to grow,” Piccolo said in the release, “it is imperative that we provide the infrastructure, amenities, and level of service our customers have enjoyed in the past. Maintaining our reputation as the least stressful, easiest to travel through, best full-service airport in the region is our top priority,” he added.