Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport Taxiway S Reconstruction and Bridge

Phoenix, Arizona

As one of the busiest airports in the U.S., the Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport serves tens of millions of passengers a year and continues to grow. To accommodate the increasing number of passengers, Kiewit reconstructed Taxiway S, located between terminals three and four. The taxiway is a central artery connecting the north and south airfields over the busy Sky Harbor Boulevard.

This 1-Step Design-Build project included the complete reconstruction of Taxiway Sierra (“S”) including 50,000 SY of 18-inch PCCP, and demolition of two existing taxiway bridges and replacement with one 400-foot-long by 214-foot-wide post tensioned cast-in-place bridge at Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport. In addition, the project scope included 80,000 CY of excavation, new airfield electric, drainage facilities, and infield reconstruction.

The project team, including members from airfield operations, the FAA, the City and the designer, Dibble & Associates, worked hand-in-hand during the preconstruction phase to develop a design that accommodated an aggressive nine-month taxiway closure. The team successfully implemented several value engineering concepts that resulted in a $1.1 million dollar savings.

The aggressive nine month taxiway closure required crews to work multiple shifts, and required coordination of multiple crews across multiple construction trades. The project team had to work closely with both airfield operations and landside operations to successfully complete this project.

This project received the following awards:

• 2006 AGC Project of the Year, Over $10 million, Public Heavy/Industrial
• 2006 APWA Project of the Year, Transportation, $10-100 million
• Southwest Contractor’s Best of 2006, Civil/Infrastructure
• Southwest Contractor’s Best of 2007, Taxiway reconstruction and bridge design-build