OREANDA-NEWS. More check-in capacity, improved passenger circulation and a new food court will be unveiled in 2015 as part of a major transformation of Sydney Airport's T1 landside departures area.

Check-in counters will be extended to accommodate more passengers and more eat-in seating will be added while the pathway through the food court will be moved to provide a line of sight to departures and improve wayfinding.

"Work has commenced on a major redevelopment of our T1 landside departures area, which will provide more seating, great new eat-in and takeaway options and faster processing for our customers," Sydney Airport chief executive officer Kerrie Mather said.

"Check-in capacity for our passengers at T1 has been increased by 15 per cent over the past two years, which has been complemented with the introduction of new check-in technology such as kiosks and automatic bag-drops."

Toby's Estate, Top Juice and Pretzel World will open as part of the makeover before the end of the year, while Nando's, Roll'd, Soul Origin and Hokka Hokka will open early in 2015, with more to be announced next year.

"Our vision to bring to life a vibrant casual dining precinct was inspired by the growing popularity of street food," Ms Mather said. "Customers have asked for more great quality and good value options, so we've focused on fresh and fast in deciding our new food and beverage offer.

"With the growth of Asian markets, particularly our Chinese visitors who are now our second largest inbound market, we've increased the number of Asian dining options. Hokka Hokka will be offering an exclusive airport menu, while Roll'd Vietnamese will be selling a great range of Vietnamese-inspired street food including pork and chicken banh mi baguettes, pho and rice paper rolls.

"The success of Toby's Estate at T2 has proved that our passengers love gourmet cafe options, so we'll be bringing their signature blend to T1 along with Soul Origin, which makes all its breakfasts, salads and lunches fresh on the premises.

"Nandos, Pretzel World and Top Juice will provide convenient, quality grab-and-go options for passengers in a hurry.

"Toby's Estate and Top Juice started in Sydney and it's great to be able to showcase these local brands to the world in our new look food court."

Phase 1 of the landside transformation will open in early 2015 and is part of a broader redevelopment of T1 throughout 2015 and 2016.

Major works to improve traffic flow in and around the precinct will also continue throughout 2015.

"More than 13 million passengers travel through T1 every year and we will continue to improve the airport, maintaining our commitment to the highest standards of customer service, value and choice," Ms Mather said.