Mayor Richard Daley announced an ambitious expansion plan for O'Hare International Airport on Friday that would add one runway and rebuild three others -- an attempt to ease an air traffic crunch in Chicago that has meant long delays for travelers from coast to coast.

Daley said the $6 billion plan would reduce overall delays by 79 percent while nearly doubling the number of flights O'Hare could handle each year to 1.6 million. The airport now handles slightly more than 900,000 flights a year.

The Democratic mayor had promised to present an O'Hare plan to Gov. George Ryan by Sunday. Ryan, a Republican who has veto power over new runways in the state, has said he opposes O'Hare expansion and favors a new airport 40 miles south of the city in Peotone.

http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/nati...Expansion.html