Hollywood Burbank Airport Road Closures: Elevate BUR Updates
Road closures on Hollywood Way are now in effect through June 6 for the $1.2B Elevate BUR terminal project. Here's what drivers and travelers need to know.
Hollywood Way is getting busier before it gets easier. A traffic advisory took effect Monday for construction tied to Elevate BUR, the $1.2 billion terminal replacement project at Hollywood Burbank Airport, and drivers heading to the airport should plan accordingly through at least early June.
The advisory runs through June 6 and covers a stretch of Hollywood Way that sees heavy airport traffic daily. One southbound lane near Thornton Avenue is now closed between 9 a.m. and 6 p.m., Monday through Saturday. The sidewalk and bike lane on the west side of Hollywood Way between Winona and Thornton avenues are also shut down for the duration. The Burbank-Glendale-Pasadena Airport Authority is directing drivers to use the Empire Avenue entrance or approach the airport westbound on Thornton Avenue to avoid the construction zone.
Airport officials are urging travelers to arrive at least two hours before their scheduled departure, even for the notoriously efficient regional airport that regulars have long appreciated for its quick in-and-out experience.
The construction disruptions reflect how deep into the build the project has gotten. The Burbank-Glendale-Pasadena Airport Authority (BGPAA) broke ground on Elevate BUR in January 2024, on a parcel of land north of the existing terminal, adjacent to San Fernando Road and North Hollywood Way. The target opening is October 2026, which puts the project roughly six months out from its public debut.
Burbank voters authorized the project a decade ago when they approved Measure B in 2016. The scope has always been significant: a full replacement terminal rather than a renovation of the aging facility that has served the airport for decades. The new building will clock in at 355,000 square feet and include 14 gates, up to 6,637 parking spaces, and updated airfield infrastructure designed to put more distance between the runways and the terminal building itself. That airfield reconfiguration brings the facility into compliance with current Federal Aviation Administration safety standards, along with updated seismic safety and ADA features.
The design concept, called “the Icon,” was unveiled in 2023. Planners described the aesthetic as drawing from Hollywood’s history and mid-century modern architecture. The main entrance will face the corner of Winona Avenue and Hollywood Way, where a plaza and a silver archway are meant to evoke the Old Hollywood era. Inside, travelers will find a redesigned ticketing lobby with automated kiosks for boarding passes and bag check, a new TSA checkpoint, and new baggage claim facilities.
For Burbank residents who live near the airport corridor, the construction’s effects aren’t limited to travelers. Hollywood Way carries significant local traffic between the Media District and the northern end of the city, and a lane closure during business hours adds friction to an already busy stretch of road. Drivers commuting to the studios or cutting through to Empire Avenue should expect to add time to their trips, particularly during mid-morning and mid-afternoon peaks when airport departures cluster.
The BGPAA has not announced additional road closure phases beyond the current June 6 advisory, though further traffic impacts are likely as the project moves toward its fall completion target. Anyone with regular airport travel on the calendar this spring should check the Elevate BUR website before heading out.
What the city gets on the other side of all this disruption is a facility built for the next several decades rather than the last several. The current terminal has handled growth it was never designed to accommodate. A 355,000-square-foot replacement with modern safety standards and expanded gate capacity positions Hollywood Burbank Airport to compete more effectively with LAX for travelers in the north end of the Los Angeles basin, particularly those in Burbank, Glendale, and the San Fernando Valley who have long valued the airport precisely because it is not LAX.
For now, though, the practical reality is a lane closure on Hollywood Way and a reminder to leave early.
