Newark Airport Offers Coronavirus, Antibody Tests For Passengers

NEWARK, NJ — People passing through Newark Liberty International Airport can now take an on-site coronavirus test.

On Tuesday, Port Authority and XpresCheck officials announced they’re expanding access to a testing facility in Terminal B at the airport. When it first launched in August, tests were only open to terminal employees, airline employees and airport workers.

Now, passengers can also get tested for the coronavirus that causes COVID-19, officials said.

The site, located on level 3 of the terminal, has nine separate rooms. It can carry out antibody testing and polymerase chain reaction (PCR) testing. The tests are then sent to outside laboratories.

XpresCheck previously rolled out a pilot site at John F. Kennedy International Airport (JFK), which was among the first in the nation.

The new testing facility is one of several changes at Newark Airport since the onset of the pandemic in New Jersey.

According to the Port Authority, which oversees Newark, JFK and LaGuardia airports, travelers are seeing a completely different landscape when they pass through any of those facilities. That includes:

• Mandatory face masks, including aboard airport buses and AirTrains
• Only ticketed passengers are allowed entry to the terminals (with the exception of those accompanying passengers that require special assistance)
• Plexiglass shields installed throughout the airport
• More cleaning, sanitizing and disinfecting
• Hand sanitizer available throughout the airport

“Our airports are working hard to support the return of air travel to pre-COVID levels and making sure our customers and employees feel safe and confident when they come to one of our airports,” Port Authority Aviation Director Huntley Lawrence previously said.

• See related article: Newark Airport Adapts To Coronavirus: Masks, PPE Vending Machines

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