Mexico City Considers Airport Alternatives

MEXICO CITY — The government will have to begin planning a new international airport within five years because the present Benito Juarez Airport is too small to handle growing demands on its services, an official warned Tuesday.

Jorge de la Madrid, in charge of airport development at the Transport Ministry, said the government is considering expanding the airport in Toluca, 35 miles west of the capital to help ease air traffic pressure.

More than 40% of Mexico’s air traffic is channeled through Benito Juarez Airport. Its central location brings complaints from homeowners because of low-flying jets, but tourists and businessmen like its location only 15 minutes by car from the city’s center.