Gerald R. Ford International Airport receives $8.5M for updates

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (WILX) - Gerald R. Ford International Airport in Grand Rapids is being awarded over $8.5 million from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA).

The money will be used to install eight new passenger boarding bridges. That’s the tunnel that gets people from the airport to the plane they’re boarding.

It’s part of the first installments of the $1 billion in grants being awarded to 85 airports. A total of $5 billion will be awarded for airport projects as included in the infrastructure bill President Biden signed last November.

Denver International Airport will receive the largest portion of the FAA grants with $60 million while Boston’s Logan Airport and Orlando International Airport will each receive $50 million.

The main airports in Detroit and Philadelphia will get more than $20 million each to renovate their restrooms.

The funding is from the Airport Terminal Program, one of three aviation programs created by the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act.

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