Secretary of Transportation Norman Y. Mineta signed a letter of intent to make available…
Secretary of Transportation Norman Y. Mineta signed a letter of intent to make available more than $337 million in Federal funds over the next fifteen years to expand Chicago O’Hare International Airport, saying the airport must expand to stay ahead of increasing air traffic.
“O’Hare must expand to keep pace with the growing demand for air travel,” said Secretary Mineta. “If it doesn’t, our entire national aviation system will suffer.”
The new federal funds will help cover the costs of building new runways, taxiways and a terminal that are part of the first phase of a long-term plan to significantly expand the O’Hare airport.
The Federal Aviation Administration is issuing a letter of intent, which is the first step needed to provide the city of Chicago with $300 million dollars from its Airports Improvement Program for the first phase of the O’Hare expansion. This money will be paid to the city in $20 million dollar installments every year for the next fifteen years. The letter of intent also includes a separate commitment of $37.2 million dollars of Airport Improvement Program, which will be paid to the city over the next five years.
The Secretary said backups at O’Hare affect over 40 percent of all U.S. flights on a given day. “O’Hare International is the tie that binds so much of our aviation system together,” said Secretary Mineta. “Investing in an expanded O’Hare is the best way to keep Americans moving with the pace of the American economy.”
The two grants will cover approximately ten percent of the cost of the first phase of the airport’s expansion that will add two new runways and extend the existing Runway 10L/28R. In addition, expansion plans call for the construction of a new concourse to help improve the boarding process as well as new taxiways and navigational aids.
“An expanded O’Hare means less time sitting on runways waiting to take off or stuck in a holding pattern,” said Mineta. “For just ten percent of the construction cost, taxpayers and travelers alike will get a national system that is more convenient, more connected and more capable.”
The expansion project is expected to allow O’Hare to handle nearly 482 more flights each day, increasing capacity by 18 percent when work is finished later this decade, the Secretary noted.
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