The New Airport: Safety Over Speed

By Dan Cray

Those glass atriums and mini-mall floor plans familiar to passengers trotting through the nation's airports may soon be more casualties of Sept. 11. Architects who specialize in airport design say a quiet change is taking place: long-planned airport renovations in at least a dozen cities, once predicated on moving passengers quickly through sleek terminals, are being revamped to emphasize security. Airy observation decks and artsy furnishings are giving way to hidden security corridors and concealed bomb sensors. "We're not building fortresses," says Ron Steinert, who oversees aviation projects for Gensler architects, "but we have to think about protection along with passenger comfort." Designers working on terminals in New York City, Chicago, Dallas, Seattle and Los Angeles are considering such ideas as blast-resistant panels, shatterproof glass and interior aesthetics that visually differentiate public areas from secure sections. A proposed $12 billion expansion to LAX is on hold until architects can incorporate a luggage-inspection facility several blocks from the terminals. Other gateways are drafting facilities with ductile window frames that flex during explosions. "This isn't the end of glass in terminals," says Ginger Evans, aviation manager at the engineering firm Carter & Burgess Inc. "It just means we might have to utilize it differently." Though more urgent fixes will come first--making space for the new baggage-inspection machines required of the airlines, for example--big alterations are on the way. "There are so many changes to the existing models," says Los Angeles World Airports architect Kim Day, "that we're going to end up with a different prototype for airport terminals."

--By Dan Cray