About the Study

Approved by the Federal Aviation Administration in 2017, Vision2040, the Raleigh-Durham Airport Authority’s 25-year master plan, was a nearly two year collaborative process that determined how central North Carolina’s major international airport would respond to the civil aviation needs of our thriving region over the next quarter century.

What is a Master Plan?

An airport master plan is a comprehensive study of an airport, describing the short-, medium-, and long-term development plans needed to meet future aviation demand.  It provides a flexible framework to guide airport development while considering potential environmental and socioeconomic impacts and benefits.

The process is guided by the Federal Aviation Administration. It results in projections of future passenger and aviation activity growth and preparation of an Airport Layout Plan, which is a graphic depiction of how the Airport will accommodate future growth.

The study was funded by the FAA, the State of North Carolina and the Raleigh-Durham Airport Authority.

Vision 2040 Goals:

  • Encompass improvements that will ensure the airport’s safety, efficiency, and capability to serve the community’s aviation needs.
  • Optimize infrastructure and resources in an operationally, financially and environmentally sustainable manner.
  • Enhance the passenger and customer experience through long range development actions.
  • Define development plans that are scalable to respond to variations in demand over the planning horizon.
  • Preserve flexibility to adapt to emerging and future technologies.
  • Accommodate connectivity to various modes of transportation as components of airport development plans.

Timeline
RDU Timeline Completed

Public Involvement

Throughout the master planning process, public involvement and stakeholder coordination were critical to ensuring the selected plan meets the needs of airport users, while supporting the community by maintaining the airport’s role as one of the Research Triangle Region’s economic engine. A total of 10 public workshops were held as part of Vision 2040.