The Port Authority announced that it plans to reopen one of its runways undergoing repairs at Newark Liberty International Airport 13 days ahead of schedule.
The runway, known as 4L-22R, had been completely shut down since April 15 for a $121 million routine rehabilitation and was scheduled to reopen June 15. It is now scheduled to open June 2.
During the closure, the Port Authority worked with United, the anchor airline at the airport, and other airlines to reduce flights during the construction.
While Newark Airport has two other runways, one can’t be used when certain crosswinds are present and had been under-utilized by air traffic controllers during this period.
Story continues below photo gallery
A Port Authority official said that was a consequence of the air traffic controller staffing issues also experienced at Newark Airport.
“As other issues have arisen related to Newark Liberty’s capacity, the Port Authority took on the challenge to speed up the construction,” said Rick Cotton, executive director of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey. “We are pleased to be able to return the runway nearly two weeks ahead of schedule without compromising safety and quality.”
The Port Authority said it was able to accomplish the work more quickly by “bringing in additional crews, expanding shifts, and enabling construction to take place 24 hours a day, seven days a week,” an agency statement said.
More: Newark Airport reported 10% drop in Memorial Day travelers, but ‘normal operations’
Problems at the airport heightened on April 28 when the Philadelphia TRACON — or terminal radar approach control center, which navigates Newark’s air space — experienced telecom and radar feed glitches at the same time and resulted in a 30-90 second blackout.
The incident led to 20% of the Philadelphia TRACON air traffic controllers going on trauma leave, which further reduced staffing at the facility that was only 63% staffed — even though Newark is one of the busiest and most complicated air spaces in the world.
There have been several subsequent blackouts as old infrastructure has failed and data feeds experienced glitches while being rerouted to Philadelphia.
All of this has led to major disruption at Newark Airport, where thousands of flights have been cancelled or delayed and airlines have further reduced the number of flights in order to create some stability.
Currently, just 56 arrivals and departures can take off an hour at Newark. Normally, 77 flights arrive and depart an hour there. From June 15 through Oct. 15, the number of flights landing and taking off per hour will increase to 68 per hour.
Runway could help stabilize summer travel season
The early reopening of the runway could bring back more stability to the airport as it prepares for the busy summer schedule. The runway will still get closed down on weeknights and weekends through the end of 2025 as other parts of the project are completed, including milling, repaving, updating the lighting, adding new airfield signs, upgrading underground electrical infrastructure and making drainage improvements.
“I’m grateful for New Jersey’s partnership with the Port Authority and the FAA as we work to return to full capacity at Newark Airport,” Gov. Phil Murphy said in a statement. “New Jersey will do all we can to support plans from the USDOT to invest in modernizing our air traffic control system and fully staffing our air traffic controllers.”
This article originally appeared on NorthJersey.com: Newark Liberty Airport runway to reopen 13 days early