New Jersey awards grants to fund improvements at several airports

New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie's office said on Thursday that the administration has awarded $5.4 million in state grants to several airports. These funds, which leverage federal funding and airport contributions, actually will support a total of $6.3 million worth of work.

The Christie administration has invested more than $28.6 million in New Jersey airports over the past five years, leveraging an additional $56.1 million in federal grants and $3.9 million from airport owners, for a total of $88.6 million.

The Bureau of Multimodal Grants and Programs, a branch of the New Jersey Department of Transportation, has provided the grants and agreed to further improve runway rehabilitation, lighting, taxi-way construction, and security and safety at several airports, including Greenwood Lake Airport, Morristown Municipal Airport, Eagles Nest Airport, Trenton-Mercer Airport, Central Jersey Regional Airport and Solberg Airport.

“New Jersey’s public-use airports are a critical piece of New Jersey’s complex and diverse transportation network,” Jamie Fox, commissioner of the New Jersey Department of Transportation, said. “Support of these facilities through state and federal grants helps promote economic growth. General aviation is a vital economic engine that supports more than 18,000 well-paying jobs in New Jersey and contributes $1.7 billion to the state's economy each year.”