Business Insider/Mary Hanbury
John F. Kennedy Airport, New York, Terminal 8.
- In the American Society of Civil Engineers' 2017 Infrastructure Report Card, the US infrastructure received a D+ grade, which equates to it being "in poor to fair condition and mostly below standard."
- US airports were highlighted as one of the areas in need. Despite this, when Trump laid out his much-anticipated infrastructure plan in February, airports barely got a mention.
- Local governors are taking matters into their own hands. In 2017, New York's Governor Cuomo proposed a $10 billion renovation of John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York. This is currently being negotiated.
- We compared the experience of flying in and out of New York's JFK airport and London's Heathrow airport and found that Heathrow was the clear winner.
The US has an infrastructure problem.
In the American Society of Civil Engineers' 2017 Infrastructure Report Card, which is published every four years, the US infrastructure received a D+ grade, which equates to it being "in poor to fair condition and mostly below standard, with many elements approaching the end of their service life," according to its guide online.
In the study, the ASCE estimated that the country needs to spend around $4.5 trillion improving the state of its infrastructure, including airports. Despite this, when Trump laid out his much-anticipated infrastructure plan in February, airports barely got a mention.
As one of the US's most important business hubs, New York's airports frequently come under scrutiny for not cutting it.
In 2017, New York's Governor Cuomo and the Port Authority proposed a $10 billion plan to completely overhaul the city's main airport, John F. Kennedy, this is currently being negotiated. The Port Authority has budgeted $1 billion towards this airport expansion and is banking on the fact that the private sector will provide the remaining $9 billion.
"This is a race, my friends," Cuomo said in 2017, comparing New York to other international cities such as London and Dubai, who have launched major infrastructure developments in the past few years. "We sat on our laurels for too long."
With this in mind, we decided to compare the experience of flying and landing at JFK versus London Heathrow.
Here's how they stack up: