Grant Will Fund Design of Taxiway at D/FW

After months of study, officials have announced receiving a $4 million federal grant to start design work on a taxiway around the runways at Dallas/Fort Worth Airport.

The perimeter taxiway would create a large ring around the airfield so that planes would not have to cross active runways while moving to and from terminals.

"At this point, we're talking about just the southeast quadrant of the airport," said Mike Nicely, manager of the Federal Aviation Administration's Texas Airport Development Office.

D/FW's proposed fiscal 2006 budget, which needs the approval of Fort Worth and Dallas, includes $66 million for the perimeter taxiway section on the Irving side of the airfield.

A perimeter taxiway would enhance the airport's safety profile, Jim Crites, D/FW executive vice president of operations, said in a statement. If the taxiway works as planned, it would simplify navigating the airfield and increase D/FW's capacity, pushing the need for an eighth runway further into the future, officials said.

Copyright 2005 Associated Press