Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County Airport — Attraction in Romulus

At Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County Airport, architectural ambition meets Midwestern pragmatism in a $1.2 billion testament to American aviation infrastructure. The McNamara Terminal, opened in 2002, represents more than utilitarian expansion—it embodies Detroit's post-industrial aspirations crystallized in steel, glass, and synchronized LED artistry.

Architect David King, FAIA, of SmithGroup approached DTW's challenge with characteristic thoroughness, studying airports from Munich to Amsterdam before concluding that Detroit demanded its own solution. The site's constraints—squeezed between four existing runways—forced an innovative response: a nearly mile-long linear concourse that ranks as the world's second-longest airport corridor.

SmithGroup's Harvard-educated King conceived the terminal as "simple, straightforward, streamlined." Yet within this utilitarian framework, the firm embedded moments of genuine architectural theater that elevate passenger experience beyond mere processing.

The terminal's crown jewel remains its 700-foot underground tunnel connecting Concourses A to B and C—a passage that transforms necessary infrastructure into immersive art installation. Color Kinetics' LED system, featuring nearly 9,000 feet of illuminated glass panels, creates synchronized light shows set to original musical scores. The installation has operated continuously for over 100,000 hours since 2001, demonstrating remarkable technical longevity while providing what passengers describe as "mesmerizing" respites from travel stress.

This tunnel exemplifies SmithGroup's broader approach: embedding experiential moments within ruthlessly efficient circulation systems. Hand-etched glass panels suggest topographic features viewed from altitude, while dual moving walkways ensure the spectacle never impedes function. The ability to pause the show via button controls acknowledges individual passenger needs—thoughtful user-centered design thinking.

The ExpressTram represents another innovation: the world's first fully enclosed automated people mover within an airport concourse. Rather than relocating passengers underground or outside, the system operates 21 feet above travelers on Concourse A's mezzanine level, enclosed in a tube-shaped structure that minimizes sound while maximizing visual drama.

Passenger reviews consistently praise DTW's cleanliness, navigation ease, and architectural coherence—validation of SmithGroup's systematic approach. The terminal earned the 2022 Airport Service Quality Award and ranked highest in J.D. Power's 2023 customer satisfaction study, particularly for terminal facilities and security efficiency.

Yet the architecture's success transcends awards. Frequent travelers describe DTW as among their "favorite North American airports," citing its "bright, open, clean" character. The terminal processes over 32 million passengers annually while maintaining human-scaled experiences—no small achievement in contemporary aviation infrastructure.

SmithGroup's McNamara Terminal avoids the monumental gestures favored by star architects, instead pursuing "performative pragmatism"—architecture that achieves experiential richness through systematic innovation rather than formal spectacle. The LED tunnel captivates not through architectural bravado but through technological poetry applied to mundane circulation.

This approach reflects broader Detroit values: engineering excellence, industrial innovation, and respect for user needs over aesthetic posturing. The terminal demonstrates how thoughtful infrastructure design can transform necessary travel into memorable experience, proving that architectural excellence need not require iconic forms to achieve...

A lot of walking, but decent. What I came here to review is the food spots. My flight left from gate C; I first went to Starbucks where one employee was talking about how they are out of everything, don’t sell certain things, and how they up charge everything $2 (honestly, should have just taken that as a warning and walked out). No one greeted me, the girl taking my order stated “do you know what you want?) because the customer in front of me I guess wasn’t sure what he wanted to order. I proceed to order my coffee, and began to wait. I walked up to the counter and asked one of the girls making the drinks if it was too late to get my drink made with oatmilk (lactose intolerant). She tells me no, it’s not too late and states that it’s probably $1 extra charge. As I’m waiting to pay the extra money, she calls my name and goes “white chocolate mocha? Yeah, I had already made your drink”… never remade my drink and expected me to just take my coffee and go. THEN, I go to Potbelly and order a bacon, egg, and cheese on WHEAT bread. I see my order come out of the little oven and another customer yells that’s mine! The worker asked me “white or wheat” I said, “I ordered wheat bread”, she then asks the other customer what he wants on MY sandwich, which was clearly wheat bread. She then grabs the bacon, egg, and cheese sandwich from the oven with the white bread and asks me what I want on it. So, I’m currently sitting here at my gate with my sandwich made with white bread that I did not ask for. Mind you, I paid $8 for the coffee and $8 for just the sandwich. If this airport is going to charge all this money for food, at least train your employees not to be so ignorant and unprofessional. Highly pissed. And here is my proof that it is in fact WHITE BREAD… NOT...

Maybe the WORST experience flying ever! As a DELTA Hub, they lack resources, i.e. terminals to check in, get baggage checked...and more. And to top it all off...the staff themselves are the most unhelpful persons as well. And really...and the reason I say it all comes down to DELTA....is the fact that not even the App auctioned properly. So...lousy App, lack of customer service...and lack of equipment required for US to service ourselves (since the staff do nothing anymore). Having arrived 2:20 min early for a domestic flight...and have been shuffled from one line to the next still without being serviced...It took 1:27min just to check in & drop a bag. Then...and the goes against the airport and TSA, as a CLEAR traveller, it took another HOUR to get through TSA...10 min for TSA...50min to wait in a line at CLEAR to get scanned and confirmed....and then get put in a line of CLEARed Travellers to be acknowledged & accepted by TSA. As I finally got through the CLUSTER just to get to my gates...and DELTA knowing that there were several passenger NOT ON THE FLIGHT...still closed the doors early (with our luggage)...and pushed off even though we were banging on the door for them to let us in. And to top it all off...the aircraft sat there and even pushed off LATE from the gate as well!!! I knew it was "close" and was banging on the door at 8:21 for an 8:30 flight due in part to DELTA and their inability to in-process passengers! DELTA should have their wings stripped as an airline & should hang their heads in SHAME for their proformance today!!! DTW is their HOME...and theirfore a direct reflection on how they run an airport. Delta...you guys are horrible! Do us all a favor...and get your...