Mexico to move forward with the new plan for the canceled airport project
The construction work for the new airport in the city of Mexico will start in June 2019. The work was supposed to start by April 29, 2019, but it was postponed until after the environmental impact study is carried out.
The details were revealed about the cost, capacity and projections of air operations on the conference which was held on the new project for the new international airport in Mexico city which replaces the previous Texcoco project.
The new airport will be built by Mexican military and it is expected to begin operation of its first runway by mid-2021 with an initial capacity of 20 million passengers per year, which could eventually climb to 80 million.
Officials commented that the maximum development potential of the airport will be 50 years. It will require the investment of MXN 68 billion, equivalent to US$ 4 billion. The new airport will have three airstrips and a light rail for the interconnection with the Benito Juárez terminal. After the completion of construction, the airport will make 190 thousand annual air operations, but by the end of its growth, it will close in 750 thousand operations. The parking will initially have a capacity of 4 thousand vehicles, and 41 years later this figure will increase to 6 thousand.
The Secretary of Transportation and Communications, Javier Jiménez Espriú, said that remodeling work will also be carried out at the current Benito Juarez International Airport, which will have a third terminal in the place where the presidential aircraft hangar was located. This will increase its capacity for the movement of 50 million passengers per year.
The new airport in Santa Lucía has been criticized as the previous Texcoco project of former president Peña Nieto. The reason for criticism is the distance that separates it from the Mexican capital, some 47 kilometers to the north, while the current Benito Juárez is located in the capital, which could complicate connections through the city. There have even been doubts about whether both airports could operate simultaneously.
