Edmonton airport departures roadway will reopen on Thursday

The long outdoor walk to catch a flight at the Edmonton International Airport (YEG) will soon be over.

The departure level roadway reopens to travellers and traffic on Thursday.

The elevated departure level roadway was rebuilt and widened with much of the concrete and rebar hidden from view.

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Starting at 9 a.m. passengers can once again be dropped off near the airport doors.

Travellers will see a new mural along with safety bollards separating traffic from sidewalks.

Officials say the project was completed ahead of schedule.

"The plan was to always have two lanes open and our ramp and we expected to still have construction on the third lane and the sidewalk, but we got all that completed within the 13-month period, so that in itself is a remarkable accomplishment for the team," Peter Agnew of the airport told reporters on Wednesday.

"A major criteria of success for the project was ensuring that we didn't go through two holiday seasons without having traffic flow back to our airport. So we're very grateful that we made that milestone, and we have it open up in time for that busy holiday season."

Another addition is the off-ramp to leave the departure area, which has expanded into two full lanes instead of one. 

With files from CTV News Edmonton's David Ewasuk