Governor Kathy Hochul and the Port Authority of New York & New Jersey today announced that the AirTrain JFK single ride fare will be reduced by 50 percent starting July 1 through Labor Day to encourage the use of public transit when accessing John F. Kennedy International Airport. A record number of travelers will take to the sky while the airport’s $19 billion transformation project, including an entirely new roadway network, reaches peak construction activity this summer.
“With transformational construction underway at JFK, we’re taking steps to mitigate travel delays and affirm what’s always been true – there’s no better option than taking the train to the plane,” Governor Hochul said. “As we kick off a busy summer, we’re making it more affordable for travelers to utilize the AirTrain, offering New Yorkers and visitors from around the world the best-in-class travel experience they deserve.”
The $4.25 AirTrain JFK fare applies at both the Jamaica and Howard Beach stations, the two off-airport stations that require payment via OMNY or MetroCard. Jamaica is just 20 minutes from Grand Central Madison, Penn Station, or Atlantic Terminal via Long Island Rail Road, and easily accessible from Long Island. Easy subway connections are also available at the Sutphin Blvd-Archer Av-JFK Airport and Howard Beach subway stations via the A/E/J/Z lines.
For travelers who must take a car to the airport, the Port Authority opened a drop-off / pick-up lot at the on-airport AirTrain JFK Lefferts Blvd station, which is a free direct 8-minute AirTrain ride to the airport terminals to help passengers avoid heavy congestion on terminal frontages. Parking at the airport will be extremely limited, and passengers planning to park should pre-book at JFKAirport.com in order to guarantee a spot.
Port Authority Chairman Kevin O’Toole said, “In the midst of JFK’s monumental transformation, our priority remains ensuring travelers have reliable access amid peak construction. By halving AirTrain JFK fares this summer, we’re incentivizing public transit in order to ease congestion during record-setting travel volumes. AirTrain JFK will be the way to go in the months ahead, and the Port Authority is making it more affordable for customers throughout the region.”
Port Authority Executive Director Rick Cotton said, “The historic, once-in-a-generation $19 billion transformation of JFK is gaining momentum by the day. We are entering our peak construction period while managing record passenger volumes, so traffic on the airport this summer will be very congested. When coming to or leaving the airport, we cannot more strongly recommend that travelers use the multitude of train and subway options that are reliably available. To that end, we are emphasizing the importance of public transit by reducing the AirTrain JFK fares by 50% this summer. A new, world-class JFK is just around the corner. We ask for patience and apologize in advance for inconvenience caused during the construction period.”
Both industry analysts and the Port Authority forecast record-setting air passenger volumes this summer that would result in JFK handling 700,000 more passengers than last summer. From now through Labor Day, the airport will face the formidable dual challenge of record volumes of air travelers combined with the peak of construction activities for the $19 billion redevelopment of JFK, the single largest construction program undertaken to date at a Port Authority airport.
The airport’s new Terminal One, a new Terminal 6, a new ground transportation center and the Port Authority’s JFK roadway network rebuild are all fully underway. The new roadway will be designed to bring travelers to and from their terminals with six miles of new roads, 30 percent fewer driver decision points and far fewer signaled intersections. Construction of the $1.24 billion roadway and ground transportation center began this spring.
The Port Authority has launched a comprehensive paid media campaign to raise awareness of record volumes and construction-related impacts, and provide actionable recommendations for travelers, using paid search, social, digital, radio and more.
Transforming JFK Into a World-Class Global Gateway
In January 2017, the JFK Vision Plan was announced to transform JFK into the world-class airport that New Yorkers deserve. The vision plan provides a strategic framework for the Port Authority and its partners to completely redevelop, modify and expand existing facilities and infrastructure. The $9.5 billion development of a state-of-the-art new Terminal One that will anchor the airport’s south side broke ground in September 2022. A new $4.2 billion Terminal 6, which will connect seamlessly with Terminal 5 to create an anchor terminal on the airport’s north side, broke ground in February 2023. The $1.5 billion expansion of Terminal 4, led by Delta Air Lines and JFK International Air Terminal (JFKIAT), is substantially complete. Additionally, the $400 million expansion of Terminal 8, led by American Airlines, which operates the terminal, was completed in November 2022.
All of the privately financed terminal projects combined with the Port Authority’s roadway, parking and infrastructure projects represent a $19 billion transformation of JFK and an extraordinary series of public-private partnerships. The Port Authority’s capital investment of $3.9 billion is leveraging private investment at a rate of nearly four to one when taking into account the full private investment of more than $15 billion that has been committed to the four projects comprising the full redevelopment of JFK.
