As part of a 20-year land use plan the Thompson Regional Airport Authority (TRAA), has started construction on a road that will connect the north apron of the airport to the secondary gravel runway Number 15/33.
The new road is called Taxiway Echo, and once completed it will provide improved access to Runway 15/33, which the TRAA says will increase the reliability and sustainability of the airport.
The project is set to be completed in two phases, with J.P. Thorne Ltd. being awarded a contract for Phase 1 construction of the taxiway. The work will be completed before the end of the current construction season, and the second phase will be tendered and completed in 2010.
Curtis Ross, chief executive officer of the TRAA, says Taxiway Echo is part of a bigger development plan to make the airport more efficient and active.
"We're hoping to develop the north side of the airport in the next 10 years to really grow it exponentially, especially with freight, and that's the location for the new terminal," he explains. "Our target goal right now is to have it operating by Dec. 21, 2012."
The project is so far being funded completely by the TRAA, but Ross says he is hoping the provincial and federal government will get on board and make a contribution.
"To date, neither of them have contributed towards anything geared towards that project," he says. "We've made an application through the Manitoba Building Canada Fund, and we were denied in the first intake. We'll probably make subsequent applications for the following years."
Ross says acquiring funding is important because the project is so crucial to the future success of the airport.
