Kent Airport launch masterplan
12.10.08
A 25-year development plan that could see traffic levels at Kent International Airport increased has been released. Owners Infratil hope a million passengers will use the site each year by 2011, rising to six million by 2033. It also hopes freight carried through the airport to rise from 33,000 tonnes to 500,000 tonnes.
Chief executive, Matt Clarke, said: ‘The growth in aviation is destined to continue. And there is a lot of room for expansion here.' Currently just 16,000 people travel through the airport every year. By 2033 it hopes to be flying to a number of domestic destinations such as Dublin, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Belfast and Manchester, along with continental routes Palma, Alicante, Faro and Malaga.
The draft master plan also details the links between the airport and the wider region, its physical development and how the economic and environmental effects of the airport's growth will be managed. To cope with the increase in flights and passengers, a new terminal with extra car parking would be built, as well as an extension to the runway on land already owned by the airport.
Kent International has one passenger terminal facility and a single runway with ‘sufficient capacity’ for the number of aircraft movements anticipated over the next 25 years, that plan says. The plan predicts that the airport will provide ‘an increasingly attractive alternative for airlines and passengers as congestion increases’.
Mr Clarke said the long-term plans had been formulated since Infratil took ownership of the airport three years ago. He said: ‘We expect passenger growth to stem from in and around the Kent catchment area as congestion at London airports increases and services to and from convenient regional airports like KIA become increasingly attractive.’
Infratil estimates that the expansion could create 3,500 jobs by 2018, with that number rising to 7,500 by 2033. That is a huge rise from the 93 people currently employed directly at the 800-acre site.
A new parkway rail station could also be built, with two locations – one near Minster and one near Newington being identified as possible locations for a rail hub. Infratil would operate the train service to take passengers to the airport.
An extensive consultation period is now under way during which proposals will be discussed with stakeholders including local and surrounding councils, residents, community groups, MPs, airlines, and local businesses.
Public briefing sessions will be arranged in the local area over the coming weeks. The consultation period ends on 19 December, with the final version of the master plan due to be published early next year.
Copies of the plan are available to download from www.kia-m.com.
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