It has been a busy few weeks with regard to the reaction to the proposed expansion to Bristol Airport. A group called the SBAE – the Stop Bristol Airport Expansion group – has made its feelings known about the plan, which is currently in the consultation period.
The due date for the close of this consultation period is the 17th August, and you can be sure that a lot of opposition has already come to the fore. Many of the opponents are locals whose lives will no doubt be changed if the plans were to go ahead. The Bath Chronicle and the Weston Mercury have followed the developments closely, and some locals have been writing in to reveal their thoughts on the matter.
One recent letter to the Bath Chronicle pointed out that past promises have already been broken. Apparently it was ‘guaranteed’ that there would be no such thing as night flights to and from Bristol Airport. The reader referred to a flight which had gone over their house at 2.42am. You can really sympathise with them and understand why the expansion of Bristol Airport – if it were to go ahead – would be nothing short of catastrophic for them and many others.
The computer impressions of how the new airport would look if it does get built are nothing short of impressive. But of course drawings of this nature always are. And it is not so much the building of the new and expanded airport that would be a problem. It is the ever increasing aircraft noise that would do all the harm.
And of course this means more emissions from the increased number of flights that the new expanded version could accommodate. According to statements made by the Stop Bristol Airport Expansion group, we could see over twice the amount that there is at present. That is not just a small percentage – it’s huge.
But we must wait until the deadline passes to see what the council makes of the whole situation. The people who want expansions like this to go ahead always point to the huge increase in jobs that would come with it. In this case it would be something around three and a half thousand jobs.
But it is the flip side of this that you need to think about. This is because added capacity and services at Bristol Airport will mean a predicted half a dozen flights in addition to what there are now.
And that is the figure per HOUR of the airport’s running.
It is easy to see why so many local people are up in arms about this expansion. Needless to say they will be making their views heard loudly and regularly until the time is up for the consultation period. In addition to this they will no doubt be continuing to oppose any agreements for the expansion until they get their way.
And you cannot blame them for doing that. While Bristol Airport’s planned expansion would be good for some, it would be a living nightmare for others.