No plans for airport (From Gazette Series)

No plans for airport

THE rejection of embryonic plans for an international airport at Pilning have lifted at least one of the shadows looming over the development-weary area.

In a long awaited Government White Paper, Transport Secretary Alistair Darling has made it clear that the preference is for expansion of airports in the South East continued development of Bristol International Airport at Lulsgate - not for a new airport north of the city.

An appraisal following a government consultation exercise has found that the scheme would be "neither economically beneficial nor commercially viable".

The prospect of a £2billion airport on land between the M4, M5 and M49 motorways first raised its head last year as one of the options in a Government blueprint on the future expansion of air travel over the next 30 years.

The consultation report said a new North Bristol airport - replacing Bristol International at Lulsgate - could be viable if airport expansion in the South East or Midlands was ruled out. And it pointed out that Pilning would offer transport links vastly superior to Bristol Airport which could reach capacity over coming decades.

Fears of the scheme's massive impact on local residents and unacceptable environmental damage led to the formation of a People Against Pilning Airport (PAPA) pressure group which launched a protest campaign to persuade government transport chiefs to ditch the "lunatic" Pilning option before it even reached the drawing board.

Northavon MP Steve Webb said he was relieved that the scheme was now "out of the frame".

"There was always a slim chance the Government might have taken it further and I'm delighted that it has now been killed off and that a shadow has been lifted from Severnside," he said.

"The White Paper refers to strong opposition to a new airport north of Bristol and this is an indication that the campaign was worth it and that those who took the trouble to make their feelings known were not wasting their time."

Respondents to the consultation identified numerous problems in siting an airport at Pilning including the proximity of nearby settlements and major industrial complexes, flood risk and congestion on key motorway links.

PAPA spokeswoman Sally Garbett said: "This is excellent news. They have listened to our arguments and accepted that Pilning is simply not a suitable place for an airport."