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A key part of the traveling experience at Dallas Fort Worth International Airport is about to be upgraded as part of the hub's $9 billion capital improvements plan.
The airport is launching a multi-phase, multi-year effort to renovate the vast majority of the bathrooms beyond DFW's security checkpoints. While maybe not as flashy as a new terminal or upgraded concourse, the project has importance because bathrooms are often the first impression people get of an airport. The first upgrades are set to start soon and the whole process should last several years.
"I know it's basic, but when you do customer research, bathrooms are one of the top things that customers say are important during an airport experience," DFW Airport CEO Sean Donohue said in an interview.
The project will involve renovating approximately 37 of the 45 groups of airside restrooms in terminals A, B, D and E. Each "group" consists of a men's room, a women's room and a family restroom. Restrooms in Terminal C will be renovated separately, as part of the $3 billion overhaul to modernize and upgrade the airport's oldest terminal.
Each restroom will be completely overhauled with brand new facilities and construction is being phased in each terminal to reduce operational impacts. Airport officials anticipate renovations of each restroom will take approximately six months to complete.
Airport officials could not provide a total estimated cost for the project because "the program and its phases are still in the planning process" and have yet to be finalized. However, the airport has already started moving forward with renovations for two batches of bathrooms with a total cost of $31.7 million.
The first batch of restrooms, located in Terminals A, B and E, will cost $14 million, according to an Aug. 27 filing with the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation. Construction of bathrooms at E34 and B19 will begin "within the next few months" while renovations at A24 are slated to begin in early 2025, airport spokesman Rob Himler said.
The DFW Airport board also approved a $17.7 million contract at its Aug. 1 meeting for renovations of the bathrooms near gates A18, A38, D36 and E7. The airport awarded the contract to Concord, California-based Swinerton Inc.
Renovations of the airport's bathrooms are part of "DFW Forward," a $9 billion capital improvement plan that includes more than 180 projects including the renovation of Terminal C and the incoming sixth Terminal F. The initiative represents the single-largest investment in the history of the 50-year-old airport as it prepares to handle 100 million travelers a year, Donohue said. It's already the third-busiest airport in the world.
More than 82 million passengers came through DFW Airport last year, Donohue said, and he expects that number to approach 90 million this year.
While bathrooms aren't the No. 1 complaint Donohue said the airport gets from customers, they are always near the top of the list.
"When we ask customers what's most important to you, bathrooms are always in the top two or three," he said.