The economic benefits of a third runway are unlikely to be as high as the headline figures claim. Read on: HACAN Briefing, September 2015 (pdf)
Author: John Stewart
Influential committee of MPs ‘put Government in a straightjacket’ over Heathrow Third Runway
Press Release
1/12/15 for immediate use
Influential committee of MPs ‘put Government in a straightjacket’ over Heathrow Third Runway
A leading committee of MPs has ‘put the Government in a straightjacket’ over a third runway at Heathrow. The influential Environmental Audit Committee released a report today (1) which said that a third runway should not go ahead at Heathrow until strict environmental conditions are met. These included proof can be that noise and air pollution will be less than they are now; that the Government has clear policies in place to show it could meet the climate change recommendations in Airports Commission; and that Heathrow Airport commits to paying for the associated road and rail infrastructure and agrees to a ban on night flights.
HACAN chair John Stewart said, “The Committee has put the Government in a straightjacket over a third runway. This report makes it that much harder to build a third runway at Heathrow.”
The Government is expected to make an announcement before Christmas about whether it favours a third runway at Heathrow or a second runway at Gatwick.
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Notes for Editors
Flash Mob at Heathrow Terminal 2
Press Release
21/10/15 for immediate use
No Third Runway Flash Mob Staged at Heathrow Terminal Two
Over 50 campaigners from across London and the Home Counties staged at Heathrow Terminal Two today in protest against a third runway.
At 11am on the dot the campaigners, standing in front of the giant sculpture in the new terminal, revealed red t-shirts emblazoned with the words ‘No 3rd Runway’.
The campaigners included residents from Harmondsworth whose homes would be demolished to make way for the new runway as well as people from West London and Berkshire and as far afield as Lightwater and Binfield. They were joined by polar bears from Plane Stupid.
John Stewart, the chair of HACAN, the campaign group which organized the Flash Mob, said, “This was a fun event with a serious purpose. We wanted to send a strong message to David Cameron that, if the Government gives the green light to a third runway, he will face united, determined opposition.”
The Government is expected to make an announcement about new runways in December.
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Londoners Back Gatwick
Press Release
13/10/15 for immediate use
Londoners Back Gatwick
A new poll released yesterday revealed Londoners back expansion at Gatwick. The YouGov poll found that Londoners would prefer Gatwick rather than Heathrow to get an extra runway by 44 per cent to 33. Gatwick was seen as cheaper and less harmful in terms of noise and pollution.
The poll of 1,072 Londoners found that 41 per cent backed Gatwick as the best choice for issues such as noise and air pollution, compared with 24 per cent for Heathrow. Some 38 per cent thought Gatwick would cost less, against 20 for Heathrow.
The poll coincided with the publication of a letter signed by Wandsworth council leader Ravi Govindia, Kingston’s Kevin Davis, Southwark’s Peter John and Croydon’s Tony Newman which urged: “Why waste another decade on a failed Heathrow scheme when there’s an alternative on the table?”
The Government is expected to make an announcement in December whether it favours a second runway At Gatwick or a new runway at Heathrow.
John Stewart, chair of HACAN, the campaign group which opposes expansion at Heathrow, said, “This poll re-enforces the message that a 3rd runway at Heathrow is simply not popular with people in London. And it sends a clear signal to the Government that it will face formidable opposition if it gives the go-ahead to a new runway.”
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Survey: Many buyers withdraw offer on house if know aircraft noise is a problem
A new survey just released has found that 41% of buyers would withdraw an offer on a property or lose interest in it once they realised it was impacted by aircraft noise. Another 34% would make a lower offer.
Top of the list is noisy neighbours. 70% would withdraw an offer on a property or lose interest in it once they realised it was impacted by aircraft noise. Another 17% would make a lower offer.
The full survey results can be found at: http://www.sellingup.com/property-buying-dealbreakers-survey
Third Runway at Heathrow FAQ
A 3rd Runway at Heathrow
10 reasons why we oppose it
The previous Government set up the Airports Commission, chaired by Sir Howard Davies, to look at whether new runways would be needed. It narrowed the choice to a 2nd runway at Gatwick or a 3rd runway at Heathrow. In its final report, published in July 2015, it recommended 3rd runway at Heathrow. But it is not a done deal. The Government makes the final decision. An announcement is expected before Christmas. But that will not mean it is a done deal. It could face legal challenges. It will need to get planning permission. The last Labour Government gave permission for a 3rd runway but it never saw the light of day because of the weight of public opposition. It could happen again.
A 3rd runway would mean 250,000 extra flights a year using Heathrow
- Over 700,000 live under the Heathrow flight paths; making London the most overflown city in Europe
Number of people affected:
2. At least 783 homes would be demolished
That is simply the number required for the runway itself. Heathrow has recognized that up to 4,000 in total might need to be bought up because the current plans leave too many people uncomfortably close to the new runway.
3. Tens of thousands would be under a flight path for the first time
A new runway inevitably means a new flight path. Many people in West London, (including parts of Chiswick, Brentford and Hammersmith) as well as areas west of the airport could get planes for the first time for possibly as many as 13 hours in one day.
4. A third runway is not essential for London economy
More business people and tourists fly into London each year than fly to any other city in the world. Most have no preference which airport they use. This trend will continue whether or not a third runway is built at Heathrow. The Airports Commission, while favouring Heathrow, still called Gatwick a credible option.
- There are big air pollution problems around Heathrow
Heathrow is the only major UK airport where air pollution levels remain stubbornly above EU legal limits. The pollution comes from the planes but also from the traffic on the nearby motorways. Despite cleaner planes and cars coming on-stream, there is real doubt whether, with a third runway and its extra 250,000 flights, the air pollution limits will be met.
6. A 3rd runway would cause health problems
There is clear evidence that the high levels of air pollution in London are causing health problems, and even early death. Studies also show that noise can cause stress and heart problems as well as impact on children’s learning.
7. A 3rd runway would require expensive rail and road upgrades
The M25 between junctions 14 and 15 (Heathrow to the M4) is the busiest section of motorway in UK. It may need to be upgraded even without a 3rd runway but part of the M25 would need to be put in a tunnel if a new runway is built. It is estimated that the road and rail upgrades could cost at least £5 billion. Heathrow Airport will pay for any new runway but could well ask for public money to pay for the surface access improvements.
8. It would cause big climate problems
A third runway in itself would not bust the Government’s targets to cut CO2 emissions but it would mean that the planes using the country’s other airports would need to be strictly controlled.
9. It would face massive opposition
There would be opposition not just from local residents but also from environmentalists, many local authorities, politicians from all parties as well as some businesses and trade unions. When the last Government tried to build a third runway, it was defeated by this coalition. Huge rallies attended by thousands of local people, cross-party political activity, eye-catching direct action, all backed up by sound arguments saw of the plans for a third runway.
10. There are alternatives
Other airports are being looked at where the impacts of expansion would be less but there is also scope for a switch to rail. Around 20% of the flights currently using Heathrow are domestic or to near-Europe. And, indeed, 45% of air trips within Europe are 500 kilometres or less in length. If trains were fast and more affordable, a number of people would switch from air to rail.
“Clear Commitment” by Heathrow Airport to “significantly” reduce night flights if 3rd runway goes ahead
Press Release
5/11/15 for immediate use
“Clear Commitment” by Heathrow Airport to “significantly” reduce night flights if 3rd runway goes ahead
Heathrow Chief Executive John Holland-Kaye made a commitment to significantly reduce night flights if permission was given for a third runway.
Cross-examined yesterday by the House of Commons Environmental Audit Select Committee (1), Mr Holland-Kaye gave the clearest signal yet that a new runway would lead to a reduction in flights before 6am. But he appeared to rule out a total ban.
He told the committee: “There are huge benefits to local communities for getting rid of the early morning scheduled arrivals between 4.30 and 6am”.
“Equally there is a big cost to that for the UK economy because those are very valuable trading routes to the Far East, Singapore and Hong Kong. It’s not easy to resolve that”.
“We are working on it. I’m confident that we will be able to find a way through that and that there’s a real opportunity to significantly reduce night flying at Heathrow with expansion.”
The Airports Commission, which the previous Government set up in 2012, to look at the need for more runways, recommended in its report published in July of this year that a legally-binding ban on night flights should be a condition of a third runway being given the go-ahead.
John Stewart, chair of the campaign group HACAN which opposes Heathrow expansion, “For the first time I can remember a Heathrow CEO has talked about the possibility of a real reduction in night flights”.
“However, we believe they are so disturbing to so many people that a complete ban on planes before 6am should be introduced whether or not a third runway is built.”
The Government is expected to take a decision about whether or not to give the green light to a third runway at Heathrow before Christmas.
Before the start of the Committee hearings campaigners staged a demonstration outside the building to highlight the air pollution problems around Heathrow
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Notes for Editors:
(1). The Environmental Audit Committee is conducting an investigation into whether the conditions the Airport Commission recommended should be met if a third runway goes ahead are feasible.
New survey: London businesses rate airport expansion the least important measure to assist the capital’s economy
Press Release
29/10/15 for immediate use
Londoners rate new airport capacity as he least important measure required to ensure London remains competitive with other global cities, according to a survey released today by the London Chamber of Commerce (1). The survey, undertaken by ComRes for London Tomorrow, a group set up in part by the London Chamber of Commerce & Industry, found affordable housing topped most people’s list.
Com Res surveyed businesses, councillors and the public. Only 3% of the public put new airport capacity at the top of their list and just 2% of businesses and 1% of councillors did so.
John Stewart, the chair of HACAN, which campaigns against a third runway at Heathrow, said, “These figures are very revealing. Across the board Londoners do not think airport matters to the future of the capital. The figures suggest that the polls which Heathrow Airport has carried out in a limited number of areas close to the airport significantly overstate the support there is for a third runway amongst Londoners as a whole.
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Notes for Editors:
(1). The full poll can be found at http://www.comres.co.uk/polls/lcci-london-tomorrow-survey-q3-2015/
For further information:
John Stewart on 0207 737 6641; 07957385650
HACAN meets DfT over flight paths
HACAN joined other campaign groups on Monday 19th October to meet with senior officials at the Department for Transport to discuss flight path issues.
It was a constructive meeting covering a range of topics including concentration of flight paths and respite. The groups will be meeting Aviation Minister Robert Goodwill in a few weeks to discuss the issues.
Independent research pinpoints reasons for increased noise in Teddington/Twickenham area
Following complaints from local residents, Heathrow Airport, in collaboration with the residents who sit on the Community Noise Forum commissioned independent research to assess if anything had changed in a number of areas including the Teddington/Twickenham area.
The research found that the trials which had taken place recently but which have now stopped are not the cause of the complaints about increased noise. It believed that things had gone back to their pre-trial pattern on the Teddington/Twickenham route: “aircraft have reverted to using the departure routes used before the airspace trials last year and that no new areas are being overflown.”
But, significantly, it found that that pattern had been changing over a period of years. Three things had contributed to the change:
- there has been an increase in the number of planes using this route to take off: up to 30 aircraft more per day compared to 2011, an average increase of around 2 flights per hour.
- The number of large ‘heavy’ aircraft has increased on the route. For example, A380s are up from 4 per day in 2011 to between 11 and 14 per day in 2015.
- The lowest aircraft are getting lower by around 200-300 feet (i.e. around 10% lower than in 2011).
- Aircraft have been increasingly concentrated down the centre-line of the route. Some years ago HACAN warned about the impact of this sort of concentration.
Full details of the report can be found at: http://www.heathrow.com/noise/making-heathrow-quieter/our-noise-strategy/working-with-local-communities/community-noise-forum/teddington-and-twickenham-flight-analysis#
Further research looking at what changes have been made to this and other routes and will be available later this year or early next year.