The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey (PANYNJ) has commenced the $84.2m rehabilitation project at Newark Liberty International Airport (EWR).
The rehabilitation work on Runway 4R-22L includes milling and repaving with asphalt of the runway surface, renovation of runway shoulders and intersecting taxiways.
It also includes complete replacement of electrical infrastructure, the addition of new light fixtures, new signage and new pavement across the runway.
The Runway 4R-22L serves as a primary landing runway at Newark Liberty and handled about 47% of the airport’s flight activity before the Covid-19 pandemic.
Port Authority’s New Jersey airports general manager James Gill said: “Ensuring the continued safe operation of our runways in compliance with Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) standards remains a top priority.
“Maintaining our runways is key to minimising costly emergency repairs and unscheduled runway closures. We’re taking advantage of current reduced aircraft operations to minimise the operational impact of the construction.”
The surface of the runway, which was last rehabilitated in 2012, deteriorated because of normal wear as a result of use.
The rehabilitation work on the project is expected to be finished by the end of Q2 2022.
For this work, the Port Authority announced the closure of Runway 4R-22L from 6 July to 1 October. During this period, flights would be directed to other runways at Newark Liberty airport.
Estimated to create more than $144m in economic activity for the region, the rehabilitation project is also likely to create nearly 780 total job years.
Port Authority chairman Kevin O’Toole said: “This project will provide a welcome boost across the region by creating badly needed new jobs and energising the economy as we continue to recover from the impacts of Covid-19.”
