Finally, a final decision (at least for now) has been made on a location for Lisbon’s planned new international airport, to be built at a former military airbase across the Tagus River from the city.
New Portuguese Prime Minister Luis Montenegro announced the decision, decades in the making and unmaking, along with a package of other major infrastructure measures, including a new bridge across the river to improve airport access, upgrades for the existing airport, and a commitment to move ahead with building a high-speed rail connection to Madrid.
The plan for the airport at Alcochete, about 40 km east of Lisbon, was the choice of a technical commission that studied the issue after years of on/off choices mostly favoring other sites. The previous government was poised to make the choice but then lost election, delaying the decision.
The existing airport, in Lisbon, has reached its expansion limit because of surrounding neighborhoods but will continue as a secondary airport when the new one opens around 2034. The new airport is to be financed by airport fees, public-private partnerships and EU funding, with no cost to the state budget.
The bridge project, which will be the third crossing of the broad river, will carry rail lines on its lower level; the upper deck will carry road traffic. The other main project, the rail link to Madrid, has also been stop-and-start for some time. Montenegro says it will be in service by 2034.
