The N.C. Board of Transportation approved $27 million in funding on Sept. 2 for the improvement of safety and customer service for 13 North Carolina airports. 

The approved amount comes from state and federal funds and will help facilitate many different projects and will be distributed by the NCDOT Division of Aviation. 

About $4.5 million in state funds will be allocated for the completion of the parallel taxiway for Runway 23 at Lumberton Regional Airport. 

“One of our taxiways falls short at the end of the runway and what this improvement will do is allow airplanes to taxi all the way to the end of the runway, access it and take-off without having to make turnarounds,” Gary Lewis, general manager for Lumberton Regional Airport said. “So yes, it's a pretty big project for our airport.” 

Construction on the project for the project at the airport is supposed to begin March of 2022 and is scheduled to last between 260 to 335 days depending on finances and other various factors. 

The project will be beneficial to the local economy in Robeson County, he said. 

“We do have a new terminal building and that’s a significant draw to us and as far the taxi way that improves what businesses see when they come into Lumberton and we are pretty much their first impression for Robeson County so with that in mind when they see nice taxiways, it gives a good first impression,” Lewis said.

The $27 million in funds approved will go to many different projects in the aviation industry which create about 373,000 jobs in N.C. while generating $2.5 billion in state and local tax revenue.