A $1.3 billion Sacramento airport expansion will bring new gates, baggage system
The Sacramento County Board of Supervisors moved forward Tuesday with the $415 million phase of a Sacramento International Airport expansion expected to cost $1.3 billion.
The county will put out a request for proposals to expand the airport with six new gates in Terminal B, build some additional concession facilities, add two new lanes to the Terminal B security checkpoint, add two new baggage carousels in Terminal B, as well as extend the airport’s fuel line system.
Terminal B underwent a major overhaul completed in 2011. That project to replace the old terminal was nicknamed the Big Build, and The Sacramento Bee reported in 2009 that it was “a monster, with a $1.1 billion budget.”
The current $1.3 billion “SMForward” project started construction on a new pedestrian walkway and a 5,500-spot Terminal B parking garage. A new exit road from Terminal A is expected to begin construction this year.
The county has budgeted nearly $400 million to build the Terminal B parking garage alone.
Although Sacramento residents have complained for decades about the lack of a train to the airport, that effort remains elusive. In 2015, Sacramento Regional Transit said it would take about $800 million to $1 billion to extend light rail to the airport, which could have alleviated some of the traffic and parking issues.
County documents say the Department of Airports will pay for the $415 million elements of the project with the department’s Enterprise Fund, revenues from facility charges, grants from the Federal Aviation Administration’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, a Transportation Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act loan as well as Enterprise Fund debt.
This story was originally published May 20, 2025 at 12:54 PM.
