TagThird Runway(1067)

In July 1996, the Puget Sound Regional Council adopted Resolution A-96-02, amending the region's Metropolitan Transportation Plan to include plans for a third runway at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport, paired with additional noise reduction measures. The decision followed years of study, including an Expert Panel finding that neither demand management strategies nor high-speed rail could eliminate the need for expanded capacity. Final approval of the runway remained contingent on environmental review by the Port of Seattle, Federal Aviation Administration permitting, and completion of required noise mitigation steps.

This document summarizes the Puget Sound Regional Council’s planning process for amending the Metropolitan Transportation Plan to include a third runway at Sea-Tac International Airport. It covers the history of regional aviation planning from the 1988 Regional Airport System Plan through the Flight Plan Project, Sea-Tac Master Plan, and Expert Arbitration Panel findings on noise

This 1996 Puget Sound Regional Council document summarizes the multi-year planning process that led to amending the regional transportation plan to include a third runway at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport. It traces decisions from the 1988 Regional Airport System Plan through the Flight Plan Project and environmental studies, explaining how planners concluded that no feasible alternative airport site existed and that measures like high-speed rail or congestion pricing could not substitute for added runway capacity. The plan also required implementation of additional noise reduction measures as a condition of approving the new runway.

This 1996 Puget Sound Regional Council document summarizes the decision-making process behind adding a third runway at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport, tracing planning efforts from the late 1980s through 1996. It outlines how regional studies, including the Flight Plan Project and an Expert Panel evaluation, concluded that no feasible alternative airport sites existed and that options like high-speed rail or congestion pricing could not replace the need for the new runway. The amendment to the Metropolitan Transportation Plan was approved subject to conditions requiring noise reduction measures and demand management actions.

This 1996 Puget Sound Regional Council document summarizes the multi-year planning process behind the decision to add a third runway at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport. It traces efforts dating back to the 1988 Regional Airport System Plan through environmental reviews, expert panel evaluations, and feasibility studies, concluding that no viable alternative sites or demand-management strategies could eliminate the need for the new runway. The approval was conditioned on additional noise reduction measures to address impacts on surrounding communities.

A 1996 air quality review commissioned by the Airport Communities Coalition challenges the FAA's finding that Sea-Tac Airport's Master Plan Update would not worsen air pollution. Envirometrics, Inc. found that if the proposed third runway increased airport operations—by up to 33% annually and 50% during peak hours—carbon monoxide (CO) and nitrogen dioxide (NO₂) levels would exceed federal air quality standards at multiple locations near the airport. The report concludes that these increased emissions from greater aircraft and vehicle traffic would delay attainment of ambient air quality standards in the surrounding communities.

In May 1996, the Puget Sound Regional Council issued this Environmental Impact Statement Addendum to evaluate a proposal to add a third runway at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport (Sea-Tac) with specific noise reduction measures. The addendum was needed because a prior 1993 resolution authorizing the third runway had lapsed after the Port of Seattle failed to meet an independent noise-reduction review deadline by April 1, 1996. The Council considered new conditions and expert panel recommendations to reintroduce the third runway into the region's Metropolitan Transportation Plan while addressing community noise concerns.

In 1996, Lynnwood engineer Hank Hopkins proposed using barges and an electric conveyor belt system to transport the roughly 14 million cubic yards of fill dirt needed to build a third runway at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport, rather than relying on a constant stream of dump trucks. Hopkins argued his patented modular conveyor system would be faster, cheaper, quieter, and less disruptive to surrounding communities than the truck-based approach outlined in the environmental study. The city of Des Moines, which opposed the runway project, was seen as the primary obstacle to approving the conveyor plan, as the system would require city permits that trucking would not.