Search to find a second airport gains traction

Every few years local officials decide that it’s finally time to look into a second airport to ease the traffic and crowds at Sea-Tac, but this time they mean it.

A recent meeting of a 26-member commission was assigned the task by the Legislature of finding a potential location for the airport, and they have until 2022 to do so. It could be someplace like Tacoma or Olympia, or they could add runways to an already-existing airport like McChord Field or Paine Field, reports The Seattle Times.

“It’s bit like the safe injection sites. Yeah, not me. Not in this neighborhood,” joked KIRO Radio’s Tom Tangney.

Testing out the newly-opened Paine Field Airport

The search has been vaguely explored for 25 years, and this is the third time officials have considered the idea. One change is that this time around, legislators wrote a law stipulating the new airport must be constructed and operating by 2040.

In 2018, approximately 50 million people passed took flight to or from Sea-Tac, and 60 percent more planes are expected to land there by 2034.

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“Why haven’t we done so the last 25 years? Because every time we pick a place to go, there’s so much pushback and backlash from the communities that might be affected,” Tom said.

“So they probably won’t be able to find a place,” added co-host John Curley.

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