New moving walkways now open in Long Term Parking Garage
The project will help speed travelers to the Main Terminal and free up parking spaces in time for the July 4th holiday.
Upgrades in Tampa International Airport’s Long Term Parking Garage are hitting their stride with the completion of new moving walkways on Level 4, helping speed travelers along on their way to and from the Main Terminal.
The six new pairs of walkways, which are up and running just in time for the July 4th holiday, are located along the elevator banks on the east and west sides of Level 4.
All Airport guests who park in the Long Term Parking Garage must go to Level 4 to take a pedestrian bridge to reach the Main Terminal. Now those guests can use the moving walkway to traverse about 500 feet along Level 4 at a faster rate.
With the work complete, about 200 parking spaces that were blocked during construction are again available on Level 4.
The walkways replace the old monorail system that ran between Level 7 of the Long Term Parking Garage and the Short Term Parking Garage. The monorail system, which operated for more than 20 years, had seen declines in ridership and was in need of costly repairs and upgrades before it was shut down in 2021.
Work crews have removed most of the old monorail station and tracks from Level 7, which is currently closed while the floor is reconfigured for parking. Then the focus will shift to dismantling the system’s infrastructure from Levels 4 and 5 of the Short Term Parking Garage.
When those changes are complete, together the two garages will gain almost 500 new parking spaces. Work on the monorail removal is scheduled to be completed in mid-2024.
The total cost of the walkway installation and monorail removal project is $30.4 million and is part of the Airport’s Capital Improvement Program.