Optimizing Airport Runway Capacity and Sustainability through the Introduction of Rapid Exit Taxiways: A Case Study

Francesca Maltinti earned a BS in Civil Engineering (1998) and a PhD in Land Engineering (2001) from the University of Cagliari. She is now a Researcher and Assistant Professor in the Department of Civil, Environmental Engineering, and Architecture at the University of Cagliari. Her work in teaching has resulted in lectures for the courses: “Road, Railway, and Airport Construction 1”, “Laboratory of Road Design”, and "Smart and Sustainable Transport Infrastructure" at the University of Cagliari. Meanwhile, her research has produced over 80 scientific articles and two textbooks on road geometry. She has participated in many international conferences, also as an invited speaker. In July 2022, she participated in the Staff Mobility for Teaching to Partner Countries program at the University of KwaZulu-Natal in Durban, South Africa, where she established international collaborations. She is a member of the Editorial Board of the Alexandria Engineering Journal, the World Road Association, and the Scientific Association of Transport Infrastructure. She received the best paper award for the articles: Maltinti et al., “Applying Building Information Modeling to Road Pavements Management” in: Gervasi O. et al. (eds) Computational Science and Its Applications – ICCSA 2021. ICCSA 2021, and Coni et al., “Thermal Performance of Ultrathin Multi-Functional Overlay” SURF 2022 The 9th Symposium on Pavement Surface Characteristics, September 12-14, 2022.

Michela Flore received her Degree in Civil Engineering from the University of Cagliari in 2021. In September 2021, she was awarded an annual research grant on green and sustainable transport infrastructure. The research activity involved defining innovative guidelines and techniques for the design of transport infrastructures, with a focus on sustainability aspects and integration with the environment. Since October 2022, she has been working for CIPNES (Consorzio Industriale Provinciale Nord Est Sardegna-Gallura, Italy) in the Design and Works Management Sector. She deals with the design, work supervision, and maintenance of infrastructures within the Olbia industrial agglomeration.

Franco Pigozzi received his Degree in Civil Engineering from the University of Cagliari in 2009, and his PhD in 2015 focused on Airport Pavement Management System development (Cagliari University). His research and publications have concentrated on developing a methodology to prioritize interventions. This methodology allows for the identification of pavement sectors to be assessed, preserved, or reconstructed. Additionally, he has developed new correlations to enhance the understanding of pavement monitoring outputs. Since 2009, he has been a Civil Engineer specializing in airports, roads, and related facilities, as well as a works supervisor and works safety measures application supervisor. He serves as a technical expert evaluator for the EU Connecting Europe Facility (CEF) 2021-2027 program. Since 2015, he has held the positions of Deputy Maintenance Manager and Team Leader for flight infrastructure, road viability, and building maintenance and development at GEASAR Spa —the management company of Olbia Costa Smeralda Airport (Italy). His responsibilities include EU EASA Regulations compliance monitoring, OPEX/CAPEX multi-year planning, and serving as a member of tender commissions.

Mauro Coni earned a BS in Civil Engineering (1991) and a PhD in Mechanical Engineering (1995) from the University of Cagliari. He is currently an Associate Professor of "Roads, Railways and Airports" at the University of Cagliari. His teaching contributions include lectures in courses such as 'Superstructures of Roads, Railways and Airports', 'Construction of Roads, Railways and Airports 2', and 'Laboratory of Superstructures of Roads, Railways and Airports'. He has authored 160 scientific publications. His research interests encompass environmental impact, sustainable materials, design and management of transport infrastructures, sensors, and innovative survey and control systems (SmartRoad) for the monitoring of infrastructures and their works of art. He has received the Best Paper Award for the articles 'Applying Building Information Modeling to Road Pavement Management' (Gervasi O. et al., eds, ICCSA 2021) and 'Thermal Performance of Ultrathin Multi-Functional Overlay' (SURF 2022). M.C. has international collaborations with the University of Illinois, University of Nottingham, Curtin University, and University of KwaZulu-Natal in South Africa, where he holds an appointment as Honorary Professor. He is a member of the American Society of Civil Engineers, Transportation and Development Institute, Construction Institute, International Society of Soil Mechanics and Geotechnical Engineering, World Road Association, and Scientific Infrastructure Association of Transport.