The appeal by the Bristol Airport Action Network (BAAN) against the decision by the High Court to uphold planning permission granted for expansion at the UK’s Bristol Airport has been dismissed on all grounds by the Court of Appeal.
The airport’s plans will see capacity increased from 10 million to 12 million passengers per year, alongside investment in the terminal building, parking facilities and public transportation links. The expanded capacity is predicted to add 800 jobs at the airport and up to a further 5,000 regionally, adding an estimated £430m (US$529m) to the local economy.
The expansion is also expected to enable the airport to explore new direct links to Europe and further afield. As well as providing economic links for the region, these routes are also expected to remove some of the millions of car journeys made from the Southwest of England and South Wales to London airports each year.
A representative from Bristol Airport said, “Bristol Airport welcomes the Court of Appeal’s decision to uphold the planning permission to increase Bristol Airport’s capacity from 10 million to 12 million passengers per annum providing enhanced customer facilities for the region’s gateway for air travel. The decision is excellent news for our region’s economy, allowing us to create thousands of new jobs in the years ahead and open-up new direct links, and support inbound tourism. We will now take forward our multi-million-pound plans for net-zero operations by 2030 and look forward to working with stakeholders and the community to deliver responsible growth.”
In response to the decision, BAAN tweeted, “This decision is so wrong. We remain resolute in joining other groups to campaign at a national level to stop the expansion of UK airports. We will be resisting environmentally damaging plans by Bristol Airport that seeks expansion to 20 million passengers.”
To find out more about Bristol Airport’s latest developments, click here.