Mexico City is home to Latin America's second-busiest airport (after Sao Paulo Guarulhos), and it is about ready to burst as pressure mounts on infrastructure amid growing airline traffic. But plans are afoot to bring relief with a new airport capable of meeting the demands of the future.

The Mexican government announced recently that it has been reviewing designs for a new airport to replace the existing Benito Juarez International Airport. The plan was put out to tender at the end of 2013, with the aim of completely replacing and closing the existing airport and building at a new location, close to Lake Texcoco to the east of the city.

The present airport has two runways and two passenger terminals. It was opened in 1931 and is today surrounded by the urban sprawl of the city. This has severely restricted its ability to grow to meet demand, leaving it in a situation where no significant growth can now take place.

Despite this, a range of renovations and expansions were recently completed to better allow the airport to cope with demand. Around 32 million passengers used the airport over the past year, which is the limit of its capacity now that the works have been completed.

Consultancy group Arup put together the $9.23 billion plan for a four-runway, single-terminal replacement airport that could handle 30 million passengers per year. It would open in 2018 and replace the existing airport in the same year.

An overhead view shows how hemmed in the current airport is by Mexico City's urban sprawl.

Given the location chosen for the replacement, the ability to grow the airport is foremost in the minds of planners. A first stage of expansion has already been incorporated into Arup's proposal, and would see two extra runways and a second terminal, along with a people mover between them. This phase would open by 2060 and double the capacity to 60 million.

Mexico has recently turned a corner and is seeing more inbound tourism and travel, with fewer fears over security and more emphasis on affordable city and resort breaks, especially from the United States. It has become one of the main tourism growth markets in the world at the moment.

This reality is part of the reason behind Mexico City and many of the country's other airports reporting growth, and why now is the time the government feels it is necessary to invest in a world-class hub for the capital city.

Indeed, AeroMexico — the national airline and Mexico City's primary carrier — has been focusing on its own growth strategy, adding new Boeing 787 aircraft and bolstering its long-haul network. As part of its vision, it hopes to develop the amount of transit traffic passing through Mexico City on its regional and international network.

Work on the new airport at Mexico City could begin as soon as this year if agreement is made on the proposed plans.