Bristol Airport wants to bring back a free drop-off zone and create a new waiting area for taxis. The airport has not had a free drop-off zone since it removed its 10-minute ‘free’ period in May 2011. People now pay £1 for up to 20 minutes. The airport has now announced plans to introduce a free drop-off zone – but only if it gets planning consent from North Somerset Council to expand. People living near the airport complain about cars clogging up local areas, with drivers parking in lay-bys and residential roads to avoid paying to park at the airport. The airport’s expansion plans, with hopes of expanding from the current 8 million annual passengers up to 12 million, (its current cap is 10 million) would include a new authorised waiting area for taxis and a free drop-off area for other vehicles. It is not yet known how much time drivers will get for free. The plan is included in the airport’s proposals for the Section 106 Agreement, so is dependent on the plans being approved. The airport hopes to reduce opposition to its plans, by this small gesture towards helping with the local parking issue. And to please future air passengers.
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Bristol Airport wants to introduce a free drop-off zone – but only if allowed to expand to over 10million annual passengers
Bristol Airport wants to introduce a free drop-off zone – but only if it is allowed to expand
Quick trips to the airport could get a lot easier
Bristol Airport wants to bring back a free drop-off zone and create a new waiting area for taxis.
The airport has not had a free drop-off zone since it removed its 10-minute ‘free’ period in May 2011, with people currently having to pay £1 for up to 20 minutes.
But the airport has today (January 17) announced plans to introduce a free drop-off zone.
The proposal comes after people living nearby complained about cars clogging up local areas, with drivers parking in laybys and residential roads to avoid paying to park at the airport.
In feedback on the airport’s expansion plans, people even said cars had stopped people from getting access to their homes.
The plan will see a new authorised waiting area for taxis created, which will be combined with a free drop-off area for other vehicles. It is not yet known how much time drivers will get for free.
The plan is included in the airport’s proposals for the Section 106 Agreement, so is dependent on the airport getting approval to expand beyond its current cap of 10 million passengers a year.
The airport’s planning and sustainability director Simon Earles said: “We have listened to feedback from our neighbours and this commitment to introduce an on-site waiting area for taxis and a free drop-off facility for private vehicles shows we are taking the issues they have raised seriously.”
The new drop-and-go area will replace the current ‘Express Drop Off’, which allows drivers to drop people off but charges £1 for those up to 10 minutes.
FLY THROUGH SHOWS BRISTOL AIRPORT FUTURE EXPANSION PLANS
He added: “Work is now underway to find the right location for the proposed facility and set appropriate time limits in consultation with private hire operators.”
This commitment will partner with permission to plan further growth of the airport, past the current cap of 10 million passengers passing through per year.
North Somerset Council is handling a planning application to build the facilities necessary for the airport to handle an extra two million passengers per year by the mid-2020s; bringing the airport’s capacity up to 12 million per year.
Mr Earles said it is taking local concerns about the growth of the airport seriously, and said: “By accommodating waiting taxis on site and providing a free alternative for private vehicles dropping off passengers, we aim to reduce the impact of growth on local villages.”
https://www.bristolpost.co.uk/news/bristol-news/bristol-airport-parking-drop-off-2439968
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See earlier:
Bristol airport hope to expand from 8 to 12 million annual passengers; 73% rise in CO2 emissions
Bristol Airport is hoping to expand. There is a consultation that started on 19th December, and ends on 26th January, on their plans. Details can be found here. The headline application issue is a 50% growth in passengers – from the current 8.2 million per year, to 12 million by the mid 2020’s. Carbon emissions from flights are estimated to rise by 73% from 746 ktCO2 in 2017 to 1,290 ktCO2 with 12 million passengers, an increase of 73%. The increase in passengers will be achieved by de-restricting night flights up to 4,000 per year, expanding car parks, changing road lay outs, and building a multi-storey car park (persuasively capped with some wind turbines). There are further plans to raise passenger numbers to 20 million by 2040. There is a lot of local opposition, focused on issues such as congested roads, ‘parking blights’ (cars parked in lanes etc), other local environmental impacts, noise pollution – through the night and day. There are some minimal hyper-localised ‘Noise Insulation Grants’ (up to £5000 for glazing). The airport plans to get more income in from cafes, shops and car parking, to boost profits. Bristol Airport is entirely owned by Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan – it is not British owned at all.
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