The Department of Transportation’s Airports Division has issued request for bids for the long-awaited Ellison Onizuka Kona International Airport at Keahole runway rehabilitation.
The scope of work consists of rehabilitation of the entire length of Runway 17-35, the airport’s only runway.
The rehabilitation will consist of new asphalt and concrete pavement, among other things. The estimated cost of construction is between $95 million and $105 million.
Most work will be done at night from 10 p.m. to 6 a.m. for the least disruption of airport operations.
This project will be constructed in 5 phases beginning in November 2024 and anticipated for completion in spring 2026.
The airport is owned and operated by the DOT and is one of the major airports serving the state.
Runway 17-35 is 11,000 feet long by 150 feet wide.
The construction of the airport began in 1969. The original asphalt concrete runway was 150 feet wide and 6,500 feet long and opened to traffic in 1970. The runway was rehabilitated and extended in 1992 to its current length of 11,000 feet. A runway crack sealing project was completed in 2018.
A pavement assessment found rutting and surface deformation, cracking, oxidation and weathering, which triggered a design project to rehabilitate the runway.
Details including hours of construction, accommodation for Life Flights, a shortened runway and other details were addressed in the document published last month.
Bidding for the project will end on Dec. 11.