Gold Coast Airport has unveiled its 2024 preliminary draft masterplan, which includes plans to deliver a future-focused precinct with the addition of a retail village, health and wellness hub and conference and technology center.
Future-focused masterplan
As the country’s sixth-busiest airport, Gold Coast currently welcomes more than 6.2 million passengers a year, contributing A$514m (US$334m) to the local economy. By 2044, that number is set to rise to around 13 million passengers annually, creating more than A$965m (US$628m) in economic contribution.
The document outlines the strategic vision and sustainable growth objectives of the airport and surrounding precinct over the next 20 years, with a more detailed focus on the initial eight years leading up to the 2032 Olympic and Paralympic Games.
The plan is intended to reinvent Gold Coast Airport as a destination within its own right – delivering a reimagined precinct that serves the communities of the Gold Coast and northern New South Wales.
Amelia Evans, CEO of airport operator Queensland Airports Limited, said, “We want to be more than an airport. We’re committed to creating a mixed-use precinct that would further benefit the local community, with the addition of a retail village, health and wellness hub and a conference and tech center. We’ve placed a strong focus on accessibility, ensuring the airport precinct is seamlessly connected with the rest of the city with the delivery of a public front-of-terminal plaza servicing both light and heavy rail.”
Sustainable growth objectives
The masterplan also reflects Gold Coast Airport’s commitment to sustainability, including reaching net zero Scope 1 and Scope 2 emissions by 2030.
Under the Airports Act 1996, Gold Coast Airport is required to prepare and publish an airport masterplan that includes its environmental strategy every eight years. Following public consultation, a draft masterplan is submitted to the Federal Minister for Infrastructure and Transport for review; upon approval, a final masterplan is released.
This 2024 draft masterplan has been prepared as per the planning framework prescribed in the Airports Act 1996. Gold Coast Airport’s 2024 preliminary draft masterplan is open for public consultation and community feedback until June 14, 2024.
Evans said the masterplan vision is to deliver an airport of the future: “The upgrades proposed under this masterplan are about embracing innovation and new technologies that will revolutionize air travel and enhance the customer experience.
“This means driving initiatives that will reduce emissions, such as the installation of solar panels, facilitating greater use of electric vehicles on the precinct and preparing for the transition to lower-carbon aviation practices such as sustainable aviation fuel (SAF).”
To find out more about the smart aviation technologies being considered as part of the plan, such as the biometrics-enabled check-in and a fully digital passenger experience, click here.