Located at the crossroads of the Northeast, the Capital Region is
accessible by major expressways, well-maintained rural thoroughfares,
and modern transportation services. The
New York State Thruway,
Adirondack Northway,
Taconic Parkway, and
Interstate 88 all converge in the region.
The
Albany International Airport (ALB)
is serviced by major carriers. As the major air center for the Capital
Region, Northeastern New York and Western New England, the ALB offers a
wide-range of facilities and services. A multi-million dollar capital
redevelopment project included a new 230,000 square foot terminal,
parking garage, Air Traffic Control Tower, and cargo facility. The
airport has also embarked on a five-year, $232 million Capital Plan to
improve and maintain safety and to meet the needs of air travelers and
air carriers well into the 21st Century. The rennovated terminal, which
opened in June 1998, is designed to accommodate 1.5-million
deplanements annually. The terminal includes unique restaurants and
exciting shops. The terminal also includes the airport Business Center
that offers computer workstations, laptop workstations, three
conference rooms, Foreign Currency Exchange, and video conferencing
facilities. Departure, the airport's museum shop, features gifts, art
and crafts from nearly 40 area museums.
ALB is recognized as a
world leader in developing cost-effective environmental management of
aircraft deicing fluids. To comply with environmental statues, the
airport has installed a state-of-the-art Storm Water Recovery and
Treatment Facility that utilizes micro-organisms to "digest" propylene
glycol to below detection limits. The process produces methane gas,
which is reused as fuel to heat the incoming fluid and to speed its
processing. The gas is also used to heat the treatment facility.
Some
famous aviators who landed in Albany included Amelia Earhart, James
Doolittle and Clarence Chamberlain. He paused overnight in Albany after
a circle of New England. Presidential candidates also landed here
including Governor Thomas Dewey, John Kennedy, Richard Nixon, George
Wallace, Barry Goldwater, William Bradley and Albert Gore. Air Force
One, with President Clinton on board, landed at the Albany Airport on
October of 1994 and once again, with President Barack Obama in
September of 2009. Obama came to New York to give a speech on the
economy at Hudson Valley Community College.
Three major
interstate highways, I-90, I-87 and I-84, intersect the Capital Region
and make it easy to reach major cities in Canada, Pennsylvania,
Massachusetts and New Jersey in a matter of hours. For current
travel/traffic advisories, click here.