The $16-million reconstruction of Bradley International Airport’s main runway is scheduled to start on April 12 and end on June 22, the airport announced on Tuesday.
The two-and-a-half-month, federally and state-funded project, was last done in 1989.
The Federal Aviation Administration recommends such projects occur every 20 years.
During the project, the 15 major airlines at Bradley will use the airport’s secondary, alternate “crosswind” commercial runway. Bradley’s third “general aviation” runway is for small, noncommercial aircraft.
The main runway, which serves as the primary arrival and departure runway, normally handles about 60 percent, or 210 daily flights, of the estimated 350 per day at Bradley.
“The Department of Transportation has coordinated closely with the airlines so there will be minimal disruption to flight schedules,” Bradley officials said.
Upgrades Planned
Rebuilding the runway will involve the milling, resurfacing, grooving, and painting of the 9,500-foot by 250-foot Runway 6/24.
The project will also involve the upgrade of a major water main crossing and the installation of new electrical duct banks and lighting cable.
Funding comes from an FAA Airport Improvement Program grant of $11,055,140, $2,550,000 from the Bradley Improvement Program, and $3,685,047 from the airport’s Passenger Facility Charge fund.
Each departing passenger pays Bradley a Passenger Facility Charge of $4.50.
“This necessary infrastructure work essentially preserves Bradley’s operational capacity for the next several decades,” Interim Aviation and Ports Bureau Chief Mark Daley said.
“This essential runway rehabilitation project is another example of the high value that the Connecticut Department of Transportation places on Bradley International Airport, an important economic force in the state of Connecticut,” Deputy Transportation Commissioner Al Martin said.
“We appreciate our customers’ patience,” said Martin.
Federal Cash Coming
In related news, last week U.S. Rep. John B. Larson, D-1st District, announced that Bradley will receive $8 million for repairing the second runway from the Obama stimulus package, the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, passed in February.
The U.S. Department of Transportation allocated the money.
The crosswind is in “safe and usable” shape, Daley said, “but it’s near the end of its useful life.” It last was reconstructed a few years short of 20 years ago.
When the main runway project is finished, Daley said, “We should be in a position to move quickly over to the crosswind. We could start this summer.”
Fixing the crosswind may take as long as three months.
While it’s closed, Daley stressed, “It won’t affect flight schedules.”
However, the money is not yet finalized.
“We still have to apply for the money,” Daley said. “We submitted all the project background to the FAA, and the FAA has agreed that it’s a priority project and has tentatively put our project on the list to be funded from stimulus money, but it’s now up to us to do the steps to secure that grant.”
Airport staff is “hard at work doing all of that legwork,” Daley said.
He said the airport is “very confident the money will come.”
“We may get more than $8 million or less, since the level of the grant depends on the cost of the project,” he said.
Bradley is “Southern New England’s gateway to the world,” Larson said. “This funding will not only improve the airport’s infrastructure, but will also save and create jobs during our tough economic times,” he said. By making this critical investment in our state’s major hub of commerce and transportation, we boldly set the path toward increasing the overall economic strength of the state and our region.”
Bradley is the second largest airport in New England with a customer base that covers the entire Northeast, including Western Massachusetts, New York, and New Jersey. According to the most recent economic impact analysis, Bradley contributes $4 billion in economic activity to the state and surrounding region. The amount represents $1.2 billion in wages and 18,000 full-time jobs.
