RDU's $500M runway project just got a major boost
Triangle Business Journal, September 5, 2023
Raleigh-Durham International Airport’s long-planned $500 million runway is one step closer to becoming a reality.
The Federal Aviation Administration, after years of assessments and analysis, issued its official authorization at the end of August. That means the airport can move forward toward building a new runway – something officials have said is critical to attract more airlines and flights in the years ahead, including international destinations.
Other expansion projects at RDU depend on the new runway as well – such as gate additions at Terminal 2 that are not currently possible because of the location of the current airstrip.
The new runway will be more than 10,600 feet long and is expected to be completed by 2028.
The existing primary runway is 10,000 feet and was built in the 1980s. RDU officials say it's in dire need of replacement. The plan for the new runway calls for putting it more than 500 feet west of the current airstrip – allowing the current runway to remain in operation during construction.
Raleigh-Durham Airport Authority CEO Michael Landguth said having the FAA authorization is a critical step in the process.
“It gives (airlines) some certainty that we’re on a path to get a replacement runway there, so they know it will be up and running all the time,” Landguth said Tuesday, noting that despite the imminent end of the current runway’s lifespan, airlines “have never really stopped” expressing interest in offering new destinations at RDU.
Bill Sandifer, chief development officer at RDU, said the next step is to submit for state and local permits. Those applications should be sent in the next 30 to 60 days, he said.
Sandifer said construction could start next year. In the meantime, there’s site work that can happen sooner, such as the demolition of three buildings near Lumley Road.
The current terminals at RDU are designed to serve 16.5 million passengers annually, a number officials have said the airport will eclipse in 2026 – the figure was just shy of 12 million passengers in 2022.
Terminal 2, the 36-gate building that supports the bulk of RDU’s traffic, including its nonstop flights to Paris, London and Iceland, is limited with the current runway.
“You really can’t add capacity on the air side until the runway moves,” Sandifer said. That means additional gates at RDU’s main terminal could not be added until 2030 at the earliest, based on construction timelines.
And even then, there are limitations that already have RDU officials looking ahead at future projects once the runway is complete.
Due to geography, Terminal 2 would max out at 53 gates – even with a new runway. In February, Landguth told the airport board the team was already thinking past Terminal 2, perhaps to a “multibillion” Terminal 3 in the future.”
The Airport Authority has also approved an initiative to advance the planning and concept designs for a future expansion of Terminal 1 that could include improvements to roads, curbs, parking, ticketing, gate areas, concessions and pre-and post-security areas.
What business leaders are saying
Joe Milazzo leads the Regional Transportation Alliance, a coalition out of the Greater Raleigh Chamber of Commerce. His group, made up of area business leaders, has designated the new runway as the business community’s top transportation priority for years.
Milazzo said that in order to have a vibrant business community, “you have to have a functioning, successful primary runway.”
“This hopefully puts us on the glide path to runway success, which is ultimately regional success,” he said in an interview, noting that the new gates – and flights – that could follow will be critical to the growing region. “You’re going to be adding a million more people in the catchment area for the airport over the next decade or so.”
Brooks Raiford, CEO of the North Carolina Technology Association, said the airport is critical in supporting his industry – making a new runway invaluable. He points to the connectivity that happened following the debut of United Airlines inaugural flight to the Bay Area as an example of why a long airstrip is necessary.
“A three-day, two-night trip became a two-day, one-night trip … you multiply that out, that’s a lot more time,” he said, pointing to the fact that in addition to startups looking to access capital connections in Silicon Valley, the long haul flight is critical to tech firms with existing California connections such as Cisco (Nasdaq: CSCO).
The new runway will be critical for continued West Coast service, airport officials have said. And it could put RDU in line to win more international destinations – furthering business opportunities across the Atlantic.
Michael Haley, executive director for Wake County Economic Development, called the airport “one of the most important economic development assets in the Research Triangle.”
“The new runway will allow RDU to grow as our region grows, ensuring we have the necessary connectivity for our businesses and residents,” Haley said.