San Francisco International Airport (SFO) has announced reconstruction of Runway 28L will finish a week earlier than scheduled.
The project team have completed the installation of the base layer and are now repaving and repainting the runway’s surface layer.
The crew, which started reconstruction work on 7 September, have been working every day on the project.
Airport officials expect all runways to be fully functional by 9pm today.
SFO Airport director Ivar C. Satero said: “I am proud to announce the re-opening of Runway 28L at SFO, ahead of schedule.
“I would like to acknowledge the inconvenience this work caused to our customers, and thank them for their patience during this critical project, which will ensure the long-term reliability of our runway system at SFO.”
The $16.2m renovation project of the 11,381ft runway, constructed in the early 1960s, includes 1,900ft of Runway 28L, as well as replacement of lighting and drainage infrastructure to cover the 600ft of Runway 1L.
Federal Aviation Administration spokesman Ian Gregor was quoted by San Francisco Chronical as saying: “The Federal Aviation Administration warned that the airport’s estimated arrival capacity would be cut in half. All major airline carriers and the National Business Aircraft Association, which is responsible for private aircraft, voluntarily reduced their traffic by 13%.”
The airport, however, cautioned passengers to expect delays until the runways reopen.
Travellers have also been requested to contact their airline directly for updates regarding the schedule.
