Portland airport plans $13.7M upgrade on primary runway

Photo / Courtesy of THE PORTLAND INTERNATIONAL JETPORT Rehabilitation of Portland International Jetport’s primary runway is planned for this spring. The red X marks the intersection between the primary and secondary runways.

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By Jessica Hall

Plans are in the works to close the primary runway at Portland International Jetport this spring to carry out a $13.77 million improvement project.

The rehabilitation of the east-west Runway 11/29 will take place for 56 days from April 18 through June 13. During that time, all air traffic in and out of the Jetport will be operating on the airport’s secondary north-south runway, according to a news release.

The redirection will mean a significant change in air traffic over Portland, South Portland, Scarborough and Westbrook.

For 28 days, from May 16 through June 13, the airport will be closed for fixed wing aircraft from 10:30 p.m. to 5:45 a.m. to facilitate rehabilitating the runway intersection.

The project comes as air traffic is seeing recovery from pandemic-related slowdowns.

The project is needed because asphalt surfaces have a limited lifespan and require periodic repair and rehabilitation. Factors like aircraft operations and weather over time contribute to the Pavement Condition Index hitting thresholds that require resurfacing.

Runway 11/29, the Jetport’s primary runway, was resurfaced in 2004. Asphalt runways in northern climates typically require rehabilitation every 15 to 20 years.