"China mulls second international airport in Beijing for 2008 Games"

Saturday, March 30, 2002

China mulls second international airport in Beijing for 2008 Games
Agence France Presse


BEIJING, (AFP) - Beijing is considering building a second international
airport in order to handle the massive inflow of travelers expected for
the 2008 Summer Olympics, state media said Saturday.

Expansion work at Beijing's existing international airport was completed
in 1999 and is only intended to handle an annual passenger flow of 35
million forecast for 2005, the Beijing Morning Post reported.

"No doubt many people have started worrying how to accommodate the large
number of passengers after 2005, and especially during the 2008 Games,"
the paper said.

Aviation authorities have already concluded that building a new
international airport from scratch may be a better solution than
expanding the existing airport, the paper said.

A new airport will also fit the expected speedy economic development of
the Beijing area over the next 10 to 20 years, the paper said.

The civil aviation administration recently set up a special ad hoc group
to study the proposal, it said.

More than six years before the Olympics, traffic at the existing airport
is already hectic.

During peak hours the airport handles 52 flights an hour, up from 48
flights last year, the paper said.

Municipal authorities said this week the construction of 19 new venues
for the Games will cost 1.44 billion dollars.

Related items such as the Olympic village, a press center and a
broadcasting center will carry a price tag of 1.94 billion dollars, they
said.


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