WITH THE RAPID RISE in travel, airports are faced with the challenge to not only maintain but also to constantly improve efficiency and safety in everything from security screenings and boarding systems to terminal maintenance and runways. Recent years have seen a significant number of runway projects, from minor repairs and updates to massive expansions and additions. We’re rounding up a few of the most significant airport runway updates to keep in mind as you plan your 2017 travels.

Chicago O’Hare runway © CHICAGO DEPARTMENT OF AVIATION

Chicago O’Hare has seen the most significant improvements with a series of projects including the construction of two new runways. Construction began in August 2016 on the new 9C/27C east-west runway, aimed at reducing flight delays and jet noise for the local community. It will be the airport’s sixth parallel runway and the second largest at 11,245 feet long and 220 feet wide, allowing it to handle the airport’s largest planes. The 9C/27C runway will account for about half of a $1.3 billion infrastructure project announced earlier in 2016 and expected to open in 2020. Chicago O’Hare also celebrated the completion of runway 10R/28L in 2016, which Construction Management Association of America named Project of the Year. The runway also received CMAA’s Project Achievement Award for infrastructure with a construction value greater than $150 million. The completed runway is 7,500 feet in length and 150 feet wide and allows for two simultaneous arrival runways and one departure runway on the south airfield, giving O’Hare more flexibility for airport operations and allowing for additional flights to be added.

After decades of delay, the British government endorsed the contentious expansion of London’s Heathrow Airport. The $18 billion project includes a third runway along with new terminal buildings, car parks, roads and railways. This momentous decision for Europe’s busiest airport will hopefully mean less congestion, as the airport has been operating at 98 percent and was expected to reach aviation capacity by 2025 without the additional runway construction. The new northwest runway will be the first new runway for Heathrow since World War II; and though it is still a hotly debated decision, the runway is expected to have great economic and employment benefits for the United Kingdom.

For the first time in 27 years, Dublin Airport will modernize its main runway, currently handling 95 percent of flights to and from the busy airport. As a key element of Ireland’s infrastructure, runway 10/28 will receive a complete overhaul. The project will include a resurfaced runway and a new LED ground lighting system expected to optimize safety and reduce energy consumption by about 66 percent. The project will create 150 jobs and will likely be completed by May 2018. While nighttime construction work is ongoing on the main runway, flights will use the airport’s second runway, 16/34.

Ohio’s John Glenn Columbus International Airport now boasts a second runway with the reopening of the airport’s north runway after a seven-month, $17.3 million improvement project. The project included repaving, installation of LED lights and signs and the relocation of taxiway connectors. The project was finished on time and on budget, with the Federal Aviation Administration covering about two-thirds of the cost and the balance paid by the airport authority. The passenger airport provides 140 daily non-stop flights to 34 airports via six airlines and provides services to almost all major airline hubs in the United States.

Last month Zimbabwean president Robert Mugabe commissioned the newly upgraded Victoria Falls International Airport. The expansion project began in February 2013 and costs approximately $150 million. Part of the project includes a 2.48-mile-long runway, along with a new control tower and a revamped domestic and international terminal. The new runway will improve aircraft handling capacity and ultimately is expected to increase tourism in Zimbabwe. The project will also be a major step in the country’s quest to become a regional aviation hub.

In Nigeria the government recently closed Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport in Abuja, the nation’s second-busiest, to rehabilitate a dilapidated runway at a cost of NGIN 1 billion (about $3 million). While construction continues, flights will be redirected to Kaduna International Airport.

Virginia’s Norfolk International Airport is awaiting approval from the Federal Aviation Administration to begin work on a second runway. Earlier this year the airport closed its second, smaller runway because it did not meet new FAA length requirements for crash zones. The airport has been functioning with one runway, which will be repaved in two years to extend its life. However, a second runway will be necessary if the airport wants to avoid becoming the busiest small-hub airport in the nation.

The Lehigh-Northampton Airport Authority will embark on a $57 million airfield renewal project, including the replacement of Lehigh International Airport’s cracked and pitted 7,599-foot-long Runway 06/24. The southeastern Pennsylvania airport that partners with American Airlines, Delta Air Lines, United Airlines and Allegiant Air will spend an estimated $15–20 million on the runway improvements, in addition to a new transportation center for customers outside the main terminal and a new bulk hangar.

Estonia’s Tallinn Airport overview © TALLINN AIRPORT

Large-scale construction work recently finished at Tallinn Airport, located in Estonia’s capital city. The newly reconstructed 3,480-foot runway is now the longest airport runway in civilian use in the Baltic countries. The reconstruction project included resurfacing of the runway and the installation of a new ground lighting system. The project also included an additional de-icing area, engine testing area and new parking slots for aircraft. The Baltic airport services airlines including Lufthansa, Finnair, RyanAir and Turkish Airlines. The project cost about €40.8 million of the €127.4 million designated for the long-term improvement project scheduled through 2022.