Chicago O'Hare has begun work on a $300 million upgrade of the airport's Terminal 3.
The Elevate T3 project will upgrade customer amenities and facilities, improve security screening and airport operations, and expand accessibility for passengers with disabilities, the Chicago Department of Aviation said.
Groundbreaking was April 22 and work is expected to last through summer 2027. The components of the project are to include the reconfiguration of two Transportation Security Administration (TSA) checkpoints into a single screening area; an expanded passenger corridor between the terminal's Concourse K and Concourse L; expansions of boarding gate space; reconfiguration of the baggage claim area; upgrades to the baggage claim system; and approximately 10,000 square feet of new concessions.
Elevate T3 is part of the broader O'Hare 21 capital program. Finished portions of that program have included the expansion of Terminal 5 and new runway construction. In addition, the airport will get two new concourses and Terminal 2 will be more than doubled in space and reopened as the O'Hare Global Terminal.
The Global Terminal project is slated to begin in 2026 with an estimated price tag of $2.2 billion.