Victoria Airport Authority (VAA) is set to invest $19.4m to expand the ground-level departure lounge at Victoria International Airport in Canada as part of its strategy to manage the growing number of travellers at the site.

The 1,765m² lower passenger departure lounge is being developed in response to the use of larger-capacity aircraft in existing markets.

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“The upsizing of aircraft from 30-to-50-seat Dash-8’s to 76-to-80-seat Q400’s, combined with passenger growth, has driven the need to expand our lower passenger departures lounge.”

The investment is set to be made over a period of 27 months and will see the addition of dedicated aircraft gates, covered walkways, new washrooms, and additional food and beverage provisions, as well as retail spaces.

It is expected to double the seating capacity of the departure lounge upon completion.

Victoria Airport Authority president and CEO Geoff Dickson said: “The upsizing of aircraft from 30-to-50-seat Dash-8’s to 76-to-80-seat Q400’s, combined with passenger growth, has driven the need to expand our lower passenger departures lounge.

“The need to improve safety on the main aircraft apron, and create efficiencies for passengers entering and exiting the passenger departure lounge, resulted in the airport recently completing an apron expansion that now accommodates the physical space required to expand the glass departure building north and eliminate the existing covered walkway.”

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The announcement follows another record year for Victoria International Airport during 2017. The site handled a total of 1,934,832 passengers last year, which marks a 4.2% increase over 2016.

The design team will be led by the Offices of McFarlane Biggar (OMB) Architects in Vancouver, while Victoria-based Durwest Construction Management (DCM) will act as the project manager.

An economic impact study was also recently carried out in order to assess the economic benefits of the airport’s ongoing development activities.

The study estimated that the expansion projects will contribute total economic output of approximately $880m.