Trump Says 'Worst Airport' Will Become One of the Best

President Trump is eyeing a major fix for what he calls one of the world's most miserable airports. The president on Wednesday unveiled a sweeping redesign of Dulles International Airport in northern Virginia, a $22.5 billion plan that would scrap its infamous "people mover" shuttles, add new terminals, and vastly expand passenger space, while preserving what he called the "iconic original terminal," the Washington Post reports. Trump has often praised the main building, designed by Finnish American architect Eero Saarinen, while calling the rest of Dulles, one of three main airports serving the Washington, DC region, a "terrible airport."

Trump said he reviewed over 30 proposals before backing a design that fully extends the underground train to all terminals, replaces the current four terminals with five, adds a pedestrian tunnel and more moving walkways, and builds a roughly 32,000-space parking garage he labeled "magnificent." In the Oval Office on Wednesday, he used a laser pointer to explain renovation designs on his desk, the AP reports. He said the long distances travelers need to walk at Dulles make it the "worst airport." "This transformation is another step in our ongoing efforts to make Washington, DC, safe and beautiful again," Trump said. "We're doing something with Dulles that's going to make it the top anywhere in the world."

• Trump said some approval would be needed from Congress, but "whether you're a Republican or Democrat, you don't want to go and be subjected to this airport because this airport is a terrible place to be."

Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy likened the shuttles to clunky Star Wars vehicles and vowed they're "going to get rid of those." He said construction could begin next spring. The Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority says it will largely fund the long-term project through bonds, with United and other airlines chipping in, meaning no federal money will be needed. Frequent fliers and airport workers, long frustrated by the aging mobile lounges, greeted the prospect of their demise with relief. "I hate them. I want them to go away," Virginia resident Richard Wayne Hayes told the Post. He said he was stuck in one of the vehicles for 45 minutes a few months ago, and "everybody was just about to lose their minds."