Two Connecticut airports were recently granted a combined $8.7 million in federal funding from the U.S. Department of Transportation (USDOT) for necessary improvements to their infrastructure.
Bradley International Airport (BDL), located in Windsor Locks, north of Hartford, was awarded the lion's share of the grant when it received $8.5 million for an ongoing expansion project of its terminals, CT Insider reported July 2, 2025.
"The construction at Bradley International Airport has been years in the making," said Michael W. Shea, executive director of the Connecticut Airport Authority (CAA). "We are pleased to see the first of these key projects nearly completed. [BDR's upgraded] exit corridors, and the other ongoing construction, are part of our long-term strategy to really optimize the flow and functionality of the terminal and ensure we are meeting the demands of current and future air travel growth at Bradley."
The two-year-long, $250 million infrastructure improvement project at the Hartford-area airport has so far received over $113 million in federal funding through the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Airport Improvement Program, the Transportation Security Administration and the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law.
According to the CAA, the quasi-public agency that runs Bradley and other airports in the state, the rest of the project's funding will come from passenger facility charges and the authority's airport revenue.
Ground first broke on Bradley's terminal expansion in April 2023, CT Insider noted, and in June 2025, the project reached a milestone with the opening the airport's east concourse corridor. When complete, there will be two exits providing faster and more direct access to airline baggage claims, car rentals, ground transportation and shuttles on the airport's arrivals level.
To the southwest near the Connecticut-New York state line, Danbury Municipal Airport (DXR) also is receiving a $225,378 grant to replace its existing airport lighting vault equipment.
"More than $8.7 million of federal investment for Connecticut's airports will deliver important infrastructure upgrades at Bradley International Airport and Danbury Municipal Airport," the state's congressional delegation in Washington said in a joint statement. "Bradley is receiving additional federal funds for a much-needed terminal expansion — greatly improving the passenger experience and satisfying safety standards.
"We're proud to have secured this funding for our state and will continue to fight for the federal resources needed to upgrade and elevate Connecticut's infrastructure."
Much Work Ahead at Bradley International in 2025
The federal grant received by Bradley International Airport is in addition to $30 million in FAA funding already allocated for its terminal expansion and renovations.
The Windsor Locks air facility also provided an update on a couple of its major construction projects.
Besides the unveiling of BDR's exit corridor in its east concourse, airport officials told WFSB-TV in Hartford at the end of June that the west concourse corridor was still under construction but will likely open to the traveling public later this summer.
When both corridors are completed, the terminal will have a new pair of exit points as well as two new meet and greet locations, while the old exit corridor will be reconfigured into an expanded security checkpoint.
In addition, an airport spokesperson said the facility will provide faster and more direct access to baggage claims, vehicle rentals, ground transportation and shuttles.
A second construction project at Bradley will bring a new 80,000-sq.-ft. inline baggage screening facility on line that will be designed to house the airport's explosive-detection machines.
Another of its planned features is a mile-long conveyor belt that BDR said will carry an estimated 2 million checked bags that the airport moves annually from the airline ticket counters directly to the new screening facility.
That building is expected to be completed by the end of 2025, WFSB-TV reported.
