The Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority board is scheduled to vote Wednesday on a $19.9 billion overhaul of Washington Dulles International Airport. The proposal includes a $6.2 billion reconstruction of the main terminal and $3.75 billion for new underground tunnels. These tunnels are intended to replace the existing "People Mover" vehicles that transport passengers across the tarmac and will eventually extend to a new concourse.
The project, which follows a $22 billion plan announced by President Donald Trump last month, aims to renovate or create 5 million square feet of airport space. The current proposal to be voted on excludes a previously discussed parking garage and transportation center. If approved, reconstruction of the main terminal is slated to begin in late 2027, with tunnel construction following in early 2029.
Dulles, which opened in 1962 and serves as a primary international gateway for the Washington region, recorded 29 million passengers in 2025, a 6.4% increase from the previous year. The airport authority indicated that $4.4 billion of the total project cost has already been approved. Funding for the massive overhaul is expected to come largely from municipal bonds, which are debt securities issued by local government entities to fund public projects.
Passengers will experience direct changes to their transit through the airport over the next decade. The replacement of the "People Mover" fleet with underground tunnels will change how travelers move between the main terminal and gates, though these benefits will not be fully realized for several years. Construction on the main terminal will not begin until late 2027, and one of the planned new concourses is not expected to be finished until at least 2039. In the near term, United Airlines customers will see the opening of a new 14-gate, 435,000-square-foot concourse this fall.
The project also carries long-term implications for the regional economy and the aviation market. The decision to fund the project primarily through municipal bonds ties the airport's financial future to the bond market and passenger traffic revenues. As Dulles was the fastest-growing large U.S. airport by traffic last year, the board's vote will determine if the facility expands its capacity to match that growth or if the financial risks cited by critics will alter future policy. Following the board's vote this Wednesday, the next major milestone is the scheduled start of terminal reconstruction in late 2027.