Travelers using the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey’s major airports may feel cramped and there are 31 million reasons why.

During the first four months of 2019, four Port Authority airports handled more passengers than any other first quarter on record, officials said. The 31.1 million passengers who arrived and departed from Newark Liberty, LaGuardia, JFK and Stewart airports was up 5% from the same time in 2018, authority officials said.

Newark Airport accounted for a third of the total, with 10.37 million passengers, which was an all-time, first quarter record, Port Authority officials said.

“It suggests further record breaking volumes,” said Rick Cotton, Port Authority executive director, at last weeks Board of Commissioners meeting.

Newark Airport also broke a record on April 19 for 78,881 people checked by Transportation Security Administration screeners. That broke the previous record of 76,963 travelers who passed through security on June 25, 2018. Records were also set that day at LaGuardia Airport.

But many problems come with moving a record-breaking number of people. Newark Airport was ranked dead last in a 2018 J.D Power customer satisfaction survey.

Travelers also paid the price for high passenger volume in late and cancelled flights in 2017 in a ranking of the nations 30 largest airports by the Global Gateway Alliance, an airport infrastructure advocacy group. Only 67% of the flights at Newark were on time, lower than JFK or LaGuardia.

Parking may not be one of the airport problems for long, however.

Five Port Authority airports, including Newark, will be served by Parking Sense, a new app-based system that lets drivers pay for parking, find and reserve spaces. Parking Sense officials announced it will serve JFK, LaGuardia, Newark, Stewart and Teterboro airports, the first installation taking place at LaGuardia in the first quarter of 2019.

Parking Sense will install LED lights in every parking space that indicate if it is available, occupied or reserved. Signs at the entrance of the parking lot also shows where available spaces are. The app also tells drivers where there is available parking, according to the company.

For the rest of Newark Airport, the Port Authority has embarked on a $2.7 billion project to replace Terminal A with Terminal One, estimated to be in full operation by 2022, officials said. LaGuardia Airport is undergoing a $4 billion modernization of three terminals and a central concourse.

Larry Higgs may be reached at lhiggs@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @commutinglarry. Find NJ.com on Facebook.

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