DAA plans to remove them as part of major Terminal 1 revamp
How a refurbished Terminal 1 facade would have looked like with the spiral ramps remaining
Two iconic spiral parking ramps at Dublin Airport are to be demolished as part of a project to revamp Terminal 1.
The concrete spiral ramps were part of the terminal when it opened in 1972, but were closed soon after for security reasons during the Troubles.
Now the DAA wants to remove the spiral ramps entirely. They are currently used to provide some car and van access to two levels of Terminal 1. The DAA’s architects said that due to substantial expansion, the original external appearance of Terminal 1 has lost its clarity and articulation.
“Due to the proposed internal reorganisation of the Terminal 1’s upper floors, car access to the parking areas within the terminal from these ramps is no longer required,” note architects for the DAA in a submission to Fingal County Council.
They add: “The current configuration allows access to 41 car spaces on the upper two floors of Terminal 1. Currently this large area within Terminal 1 is open to the atmosphere with all the unsustainable thermal issues this brings to the building.”
The DAA secured planning permission in 2020 to revamp the terminal. Those works, which will soon get underway, will include a new core facade and roof. The concrete fins around the building are also being removed. The 2020 planning proposal did not include the removal of the spiral ramps.
“The new facade aims to reduce the environmental impact of Terminal 1 and lower maintenance costs across the entire site,” architects noted in the planning submission to remove them.
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They added that the project aims to support the delivery of DAA’s sustainability strategy and sustainability targets through the removal of the spiral ramps and the new energy efficient architectural facade treatment of the Terminal 1.
Terminal 1 – in a brutalist style – was designed by Leo M Carroll, of Aer Rianta Architects’ Department, with Dennis O’Leary & Partners.
The project prominently featured the two external spiral ramps leading to the two upper level carparking floors above the terminal building.
“With parking provided within the building and air bridge connections to the plane itself, the intent was to provide the passenger a dry journey all the way from car to plane. This use was shortly abandoned due to security threats,” note the current architects.
“The concrete fins of Terminal 1 and concrete finish of the prominent spiral ramps gave the design a distinctive architectural look typical of the brutalist period,” they add.
