D.C. shares its hottest Dulles renovation takes
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The exterior of Dulles's main terminal. Photo: Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images
Good thing it's freezing this week, because we asked for your takes on a potential Trump administration renovation of Dulles — and they are piping hot, y'all.
Why it matters: The administration is fielding bids from contractors to give the airport a glow-up "at the speed of Trump."
- Potential plans: Killing the people movers and building new terminals and concourses that would replace or add onto what's already there — including the mid-century mod main terminal designed by Eero Saarinen.
State of play: We decided we'd take it directly to the people — aka you, our fave readers — and ask what you'd actually want tweaked at the end of the Silver Line. Several hundred of you took our poll.
- 36% of respondents don't want a thing about Dulles to change.
- 17% are fine with the whole shebang going away forever.
- And 47% don't really care what happens to IAD — they just want the people movers outta there.
Zoom in: Here are some of the spiciest written responses we received:
- "The mobile lounges were invented by Satan."
- "Team MAGA here. Dulles is a dump."
- "You'd think that Trump would respect the mid-century architecture as he himself is technically mid-century modern."
- "The people movers are way better than underground trains! You get to see the planes while you head to your gate."
- "All of Dulles is better than DCA Terminal 1."
- "Driving to Dulles from Northwest really isn't that bad and people need to relax. It is still closer to the center of D.C. than ORD is to Chicago!"
- "Let's treat the people movers like the mobile lounges they were meant to be! Cocktails and cigarettes!"
- "Eero Saarinen is a national treasure. Dulles should be put in the historic register and preserved."
- "The best thing they could do is add an express Metro option from Dulles to downtown."
- "Let's go all out with a Singapore-style airport with a waterfall and butterfly garden. Make my flight experience 'Crazy Rich Asian' worthy."
- "As someone who moved here, y'all have Stockholm syndrome with people movers. These things should not exist in 2025."
- "Build enough terminals and parking to move DCA over to IAD and sell the valuable DCA property."
- "Turn the people movers into lounges to pass your time while you're waiting for your flight. Each one could have a different theme: Motown, Elvis, '50s diner…"
- "Anna Spiegel should be jailed for liking the people movers."
The intrigue: The Trump administration is also pushing to make travel a healthier experience for fliers, inviting airports to apply for grants covering things like nursing pods, play areas and workout zones.
- Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy and Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. announced the campaign at DCA earlier this week, where they each did pull-ups in the airport.
💭 Mimi's thought bubble: Personally, my airport wish list includes things more along the lines of "land safely, keep luggage, don't lose mind" than "get absolutely yoked next to a Panda Express," but, hey, I'm hardly a transpo wonk.