Birmingham Airport second runway plan thrown out
Birmingham Airport's bid for a second runway was in tatters today after a government report ruled out the ambitious project.
But new runways at Heathrow and Gatwick are moving a step closer having been included on a shortlist by the Airports Commission.
More than 500,000 planes would have been taking off and landing at Birmingham Airport each year with 70 million passengers passing through its gates under the vision from bosses.
The airport hoped a new runway would have bolstered passenger numbers with links to the controversial HS2 line.
Bosses said expanding Birmingham Airport alongside the M42 gateway project and the HS2 line was a 'once in a generation' opportunity to meet the UK's aviation capacity needs.
It may still be a possibility in the future because the Airports Commission has said 'that there is likely to be a demand case for a second additional runway to be operational by 2050'.
Today chief executive Paul Kehoe said: "Whatever the long-term solution, the Commission has recognised that Birmingham Airport can grow immediately and we will work with the Government on the policy recommendations set out in this report in order to deliver this."
Despite today's decision, existing expansion plans at the airport are still due go ahead with the length of the only existing runway to increase by 1,328ft at a cost of £33 million to boost current capacity. Currently around nine million passengers use the airport each year.
The Airport Commission, chaired by former Financial Services Authority chief Sir Howard Davies, has also ruled out a new runway at Stansted airport and the so-called 'Boris Island' on the Thames Estuary.
