DALLAS — The shortest runway at San Francisco International Airport (SFO), 1 Left, has reopened early after an eight-week closure for surface repaving, upgrades to nearby taxiways, lighting improvements, and new striping and markings.

The project team chose this closure period to avoid the busy summer and year-end holiday travel seasons with input from airlines at SFO. As dry weather was required for the installation of asphalt, this time period was also chosen due to the lower likelihood of precipitation.

Golden Gate Constructors, a partnership between DeSilva Gates Construction and Graniterock, was given the job on October 3, 2022. The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) will contribute US$27.9m of the projected US$51m total project cost.

Runway Project Scope

The SFO project team completed the following during the closure:

•   Paved the equivalent of 23 football fields
•   Laid over 6.25 miles of electrical cabling
•   Reinstalled over 280 light fixtures
•   Used more than 1,000 gallons of paint for runway markings
•   Coordinated more than 1,700 truck deliveries for asphalt

According to SFO, the improvements were ahead of schedule; all runways are now ready for the summer travel season.

The news comes on the heels of the FAA announcing an investment of more than US$100m to 12 airports across the nation to help decrease runway incursions, though SFO is not part of the dozen airports on the list.

Featured image: San Francisco International Airport aerial view. Photo: Ryan Patterson/SFO

https://airwaysmag.com/faa-invests-us100m-runway-incursions/