JFK Airport revamp will include ‘high-speed’ taxiway, enhanced runway

Last January, Governor Andrew Cuomo unveiled a $10 billion plan to transform John F. Kennedy (JFK) International Airport into a “state-of-the-art” facility that would include an interconnected terminal layout, centralized parking lots, and new lanes in both directions on the Van Wyck Expressway. Now, the Port Authority has just approved a $355 million project to rehabilitate one of the major runways at the airport, as well as add a new “high-speed taxiway” to the overall revamp.

The 10,000-foot-long runway, called runway 13L and 13R since they run east and west on the airport’s north side, handles nearly half of JFK’s arriving planes and is set to receive upgrades that will make it more durable and increase its lifespan. It will shutter in April 2019 and is expected to reopen in late 2019.

As for the new taxiway, it is anticipated to save passengers roughly 1,000 hours annually in delays and “taxiing time,” saving airlines and passengers a projected $9 million.

Though the revamp plan touts many infrastructural and aesthetic upgrades intended to improve operations and customer experience, some believe that increasing the number of runways to reduce delays would arguably be more valuable than any other component of the overhaul. So far, plans don’t appear to include any new runways.

• JFK Airport will get a $10B, cutting-edge transformation [Curbed]