KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (WATE) — As the Knoxville community continues to expand, travel through McGhee Tyson Airport is not far behind.

The airport has experienced record-breaking travel numbers for the seventh month in a row, but parking issues are continuing to plague travelers. Staff said that they are trying to address this issue as well as other problems.

A new parking garage expansion was announced in July.

“As soon as that project is finished in 2026, we’re going to move into the terminal and work on expanding our gate areas,” McGhee Tyson spokesperson Becky Huckaby said. “Four to six additional gates will be added to the terminal building.”

The new parking garage will span approximately 1.2 million square feet. It will add more than 3,500 additional parking spaces with the addition of new gates in the terminal.

Huckaby added that there are many more projects in the works.

“Those could be additional security lanes at the airport, additional restrooms, just things to make your travel from your car to the gate more pleasant,” Huckaby said.

All of this has come about as the area experiences historic travel growth.

“We knew that it’s growing, but at this extent? This is something that’s historical,” Huckaby said. “This is not something that we can anticipate for so we are increasing that, getting everything ready and moving at projects that maybe would’ve been a few years off.”

Huckaby said that this reflects not only on the airport but the community as a whole as well.

“Businesses are growing, people are moving here, it’s really a good place to be and we’re seeing that growth because our community is growing,” Huckaby said.