U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean P. Duffy has launched a “Make Travel Family Friendly Again” campaign ahead of a busy holiday travel season. The goal of the campaign is to address a common refrain from the public – it can be challenging to travel as a family. From needing more dedicated spaces for young children and exercise equipment, to finding places for mothers to nurse their children, to staying fit on the go, or struggling to find more healthy food options, the Administration says it is committed to making every stage of the travel journey more seamless.
To improve families’ experiences in airport terminals, Secretary Duffy announced $1 billion in funding to incentivize more family-friendly resources in airport terminals. This can include:
- Creating more children’s play areas or exercise areas
- Adding mothers’ rooms or nursing pods
- Reconfiguring security checkpoints to create family screening lanes
- Building sensory rooms for children with special needs
- Other creative terminal projects that focus on enhancing the family travel journey
As part of the campaign launch, Secretary Duffy was joined by Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., Dr. Paul Saladino, a double board-certified Physician Nutrition Specialist, Isabel Brown, a content creator and young mom, and Luke Saunders, the CEO and Founder of Farmer’s Fridge.
In addition to the federal funding USDOT is providing to enhance physical infrastructure, the group also emphasized the administration’s interest in collaborating with airports and private sector partners to improve access to nutritional food options.
“Bringing about a Golden Age in travel has to involve making the family travel experience happier and healthier. Today’s announcement demonstrates the Trump Administration’s commitment to enacting a Family First agenda and improving the lives of the American people,” said U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean P. Duffy.
“Everyone who passes through an airport in this country should have access to fresh, whole foods,” U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. said. “Secretary Duffy and I are working to ensure our airports set the standard for a future where healthy eating is part of daily life—travel days included.”
The funding is from the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act’s Airport Terminal Program, which supports modernization improvements at airports and air traffic control facilities across the country.
The original announcement can be found here.