LAX to Get 'Curbside Appeal,' Traffic and Safety Improvements

The Los Angeles Airport Commission signed off Monday on a $118 million construction contract aimed at improving the curbside signs, traffic flow and aesthetic appeal of LAX's Central Terminal.

The contract was awarded to a joint venture, Myers & Sons Construction and J. Banicki Construction Inc., which will begin work this spring on the Curbside Appeal Project.

The project includes new LED street lights, way-finding elements and canopies at Terminals 3 and 4, along with traffic safety and roadway improvements.

A lane will be added to the World Way South transition to southbound Sepulveda Boulevard, while traffic signals will be upgraded and other steps taken to better direct traffic flow.

Similar upgrades were made at the Tom Bradley International Terminal, which last fall debuted renovated areas featuring additional retail and dining options.

"For too long, LAX has been known to travelers and guests as nine unrelated terminals connected by a traffic jam," said Los Angeles World Airports Executive Director Gina Marie Lindsey. "By bettering our roadways and providing a consistent architectural theme, we will alter that perception while creating a lasting, noticeable change in LAX's aesthetics, safety and function - - change that will last for years to come."

Before airport traffic flow can get better, construction that is expected to last until 2015 will likely affect traffic conditions. The work will be done in phases to minimize the impacts, with traffic alerts to go up on LAX's social media sites and on a real-time traffic map at http://www.lawa.org/laxtrafficmaps.aspx.

The facelift is part of a larger, multibillion-dollar renovation of LAX that is being funded by airport operating revenues, capital improvement program funds, fees paid by airlines, passenger facilities charges and airport revenue bond proceeds.

The overall renovation project includes the upgrades at Tom Bradley International Terminal and Terminal 6, as well as airfield improvements to accommodate the larger planes that airlines are now flying into LAX.

- City News Service