Public support for continued expansion at Doncaster Sheffield Airport
Staff Writer |
Following the launch of its draft Masterplan and subsequent public consultation, Doncaster Sheffield Airport evealed early results of the consultation which show overwhelming public support for the development plans and desire to see an East Coast Mainline station at the airport site delivered.
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Over 90% of respondents expressed strong support for the objectives set out in the Masterplan including rail connectivity, with the airport receiving over 1,600 responses to the open consultation.
Other standout highlights were 97% support for expansion to terminal building services to maintain the high standard of customer service and 96% support for proposals to deliver new employment developments to create up to 13,000 new jobs at the airport.
The Masterplan details the future development of the current site of the Airport and the projected growth extending out over the next 20 years, forecasting 4.7 million passengers and 70,000 tonnes per year.
The Masterplan when fully realised will deliver £3.7bn to the local economy by 2037 including £900m construction investment and £159m to the region’s tourism economy.
At the launch of the Masterplan, the airport also published its Vision Plan to realise the airport and its site full potential as the major international gateway for the East side of the UK.
With the delivery of an East Coast Mainline connected station at the site as envisaged in the Vision Plan, the passenger number growth would be more than doubled to 11.8 million by 2050, with a station becoming operational as early as 2024 – just 6 years’ time.
The consultation took place over an ten-week period between March and May, with over 1,600 responses received from the public, stakeholders and private and public sector organisation taking part.
A total of 11 public consultation events were held, including exhibitions at Yorkshire Wildlife Park, Sheffield Hallam University and several venues around South Yorkshire and North Nottinghamshire. The airport also visited a number of local schools speaking to over 1,500 school children on the Masterplan and potential careers in aviation.
The feedback received during the public consultation will ultimately inform the final Airport masterplan that will be released at the end of 2018. ■
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