Construction will soon commence on a US$ 260M Sky Harbor taxiway project in Phoenix, Arizona. The Sky Harbor International Airport is working on b/uilding its second 2,000-foot taxiway. Presently, the airport operates only one taxiway with three runways. However, the second taxiway is expected to increase capacity at the airport and improve the efficiency of flights during departure.
The majority of the construction costs will be covered by the $194 million in federal funding through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Investment act. But the remaining costs for the Sky Harbor taxiway will be generated from passenger facilities charges which equate to $4.50. Consequently, these funds will be raised through ticket purchases made by every eligible passenger who passes through the airport.Â
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Although the completion timeline for the project is yet to be decided, construction is expected to commence next year. Sky Harbor has allocated the first portion of the federal funding to the preliminary planning phase of the project. This amounts to $5.3 million.
Development plans for the Sky Harbor taxiway project
In addition to building a 2,000-foot-long Sky Harbor taxiway, the project will also link the North and south airfields. Therefore, it eases access between terminals and the airfields, which are bisected by airport roads and terminals. According to Mayor Kate Gallego, the overpass is intended to free up traffic on runways.
Mayor Gallego also said the taxiway would provide more tarmac space for the airport to adapt to inclement weather. She mentioned that having more tarmac space would reduce the number of time planes spend to land and take off. However, Gallego pointed out that there were still almost $6 billion of unmet infrastructure needs at Sky Harbor alone. Therefore the airport would have to carry out many improvements to keep up with its passenger growth and demand.
Mitch Landrieu, a U.S. infrastructure coordinator also pointed out the employment benefits of the Sky Harbor taxiway project. He mentioned that 3,000 temporary jobs would be created, with many opportunities available for union carpenters.
