BAA, the owner of Heathrow, has rejected suggestions by the Conservatives for a UK high speed rail link instead of a third runway at the airport.
A £20 billion TGV-style line would connect London with Birmingham, Manchester and Leeds, cutting 66,000 flights a year from Heathrow.
The proposal was reportedly described by shadow transport secretary Theresa Villiers as a “seriously green decision†on the eve of the Conservative Party conference in Birmingham.
But a BAA spokesman said: “BAA believes this country needs both a third runway at Heathrow and high speed rail. To prioritise one over the other is a false choice and will put Britain’s future competitiveness at risk.
“It is not clear how this proposal will resolve the lack of airport capacity, a problem which must urgently be addressed.
“The total number of flights to Manchester and Leeds/Bradford is only 13,356 or less than 3% of Heathrow’s total flights.
“Even if every flight from Manchester and Leeds/Bradford were replaced by a new high speed rail line then Heathrow would still be operating at 97% of capacity.
“There are currently no flights from Birmingham to Heathrow.”
BAR UK, which represents over 90 scheduled airlines in the UK in their dealings with Government, said the Tories’ decision would “seriously impact the economic well-being of the UK”.
“Their rationale simply doesn’t match the facts, and demonstrates a lack of understanding of the airport and its workings,” said a statement.
“Multi-national companies are liable to move off-shore, and Heathrow will fade away as an international hub airport; the UK will be the big loser.”
BAR UK chief executive Mike Carrivick added: “Railways do have a part to play in airport operations.
“Our airlines will welcome high–speed rail links at Heathrow, and preferably ones that avoid London all together. However, the share of domestic services that they will replace is still small and does not impinge on the urgent need to expand the airport.
“The introduction of mixed-mode runway operations is a vital first step to resilience and growth at Heathrow, before the construction of a third runway.
“None of this will require public expenditure.”
by Phil Davies and Bev FearisÂ
