Bari Airport Expansion Plans to Ease Traffic Surge

Passenger traffic at Bari's Karol Wojtyla Airport rose 14 % in July compared with the previous year, reaching 782,572 travellers between 1 – 25 July, with international traffic up 21.4 %. The surge is straining the airport’s single access route, Viale Enzo Ferrari, and its parking capacity of roughly 2,500 spaces, which has already required a recent addition of 611 low‑cost spots.

To alleviate congestion, a new 500‑metre two‑lane road with a sidewalk and cycle path will be built between the Bitonto‑Palese provincial road and the airport’s main ring road, at an estimated cost of €3.7 million. Construction is slated to start in September and is expected to halve traffic on the sole existing entrance. Additional measures include installing licence‑plate‑reading cameras at the Palese entrance and further expanding parking facilities, as the airport operators, Apcoa, anticipate a need for at least 2,000 more spaces.