AIRPORT REPORT : TOLUCA
“ Fly easy is an important message as people in central Mexico are facing the saturation of Mexico City Airport on a daily basis . They face delays and often problems with their connections and what we want is a friendly airport that is easy to use , easy to move around and easy to do business at .”
Toluca is also easy for people to leave . The airport is close to the two main motorways linking Toluca with Mexico City and is particularly well located for the business and financial district of Santa Fe to the west of the city centre .
Equipped with a 30,000sqm , L shaped terminal – split into international domestic wings – and the longest runway in Mexico ( 4,200m ), Toluca has the capacity to handle large widebody aircraft and is capable of handling eight million passengers a year , with a growth potential of up to 25 million .
With passenger numbers expected to rebound in the coming years , Toluca is planning expansion and Bejos talks about equipping the gateway with up to 10 passenger jetways with construction to start “ this year and end one year later ”
Commercial areas , restaurants and VIP lounges will be given a revamp , English signage will be introduced , and a renewal of the airport ’ s international lounge and arrivals area and an expansion of Toluca ’ s cargo facilities are all under consideration .
Toluca Airport |
passenger traffic |
2006-2012 |
2006 : |
2,051,895 |
2007 : |
3,300,275 |
2008 : |
3,949,611 |
2009 : |
2,489 , 577 |
2010 : |
2,270,767 |
2011 : |
1,579,115 |
2012 : |
972,414 |
“ We want to be the premium cargo destination in central Mexico . What we are seeing is that Mexico City is completely full , while just 30km north , Toluca has the best ground connectivity of any airport in the country , highways are being developing and we are looking at a new cargo terminal for Toluca Airport .”
Expansion will come from primarily private sources . Toluca Airport is operated through a public-private partnership with Spanish construction Source : Aeroportos y company OHL , the majority stakeholder ( 49 %) Servicios Auxiliares . in operating company Administradora Mexiquense del Aeropuerto Internacional de Toluca ( AMAIT ), with local state government ( 26 %) and the Federal Government controlling the rest .
OHL is licensed to manage the airport until 2055 and also manages all commercial and complementary services .
Mexico ’ s Gatwick Airport Bejos believes that Toluca ’ s mission should not be to rival MEX , a fight it can never win , but to operate a complementary service within a wider airport system , taking excess capacity from its congested neighbour and offering genuine choice . His vision is that the Toluca of the future could be the Gatwick or LaGuardia of Mexico City .
AIRPORT WORLD / APRIL-MAY 2013 17