LaGuardia is taking a lot of heat for being the worst airport in America, and now the governor has joined the chorus of critics who trash the Queens gateway as dingy, obsolete and low tech.
We welcome Gov. Andrew Cuomo into the one-sided conversation about LGA, which opened in 1939 and ranks among the nation’s oldest airports. Bounded by water on three sides and limited to only two runways, LaGuardia speaks to an earlier time when 12.5 million passengers a year were not trying to navigate its crowded terminals.
Not surprisingly, LaGuardia is near the top of industry lists for the most flight delays in the country.
In his State of the State address last month, Cuomo vowed to take control of the planned $3.6 billion face-lift for the central terminal at LaGuardia. He was clearly indignant that Travel & Leisure had named LGA the nation’s bottom feeder in a 2012 survey.
The Port Authority appears willing to work with the state on bringing part of LGA into the 21st century. But back in 2000, when then-Mayor Rudy Giuliani tried to get Kennedy out from under the authority, he failed despite widespread support.
One can’t help but wonder if the Port Authority, now embroiled in the Bridgegate scandal, has been making mischief over the years that distracted it from focusing on the rehabilitation of the Queens airport.
In all fairness to LaGuardia, the new Delta terminal has up-to-date amenities, such as tablets spread out across the waiting area and some decent food alternatives in the dining section.
There is little disagreement over whether LGA should modernize and provide a fitting welcome to our fabled city, but a debate rages over how far the changes should go.
Global Gateway Alliance, an air travel advocacy group, contends LaGuardia should adopt the FAA’s NextGen system, which uses state-of-the-art air control systems to reduce delays. But Quiet Skies, a Bayside-based group formed after the FAA changed its flight paths from LaGuardia, fears NextGen would lead to even greater aircraft noise.
Above the din one thing is certain: New Yorkers are a tough bunch who expect visitors to brave our older airports, lug carry-ons down narrow stairways and wait in long lines for taxis because that is what we have always done.
Of course, we want an updated LaGuardia but one that respects its roots and is not a clone of an international newcomer. This is best done under the watchful eye of Cuomo, a native son of Queens.
