[BeckyBoop]

VK what did you think of WW views at the recent select committee?

[Bucksnet]

Thames Hub will cause even more congestion on the M25 because there is far more demand from the west of London than the east.

[AnthonyDunn]

No, I am not answering on VK’s behalf… Having watched WW’s performance before the Commons’ Transport Select Committee, I considered his performance to be restrained if somewhat world weary: “why are we bothering to go through this charade when the outcome will be no change/same old, same old…” His rejoinder that he would not be bothering to read the final report of the Howard Davis Commission because it would never get acted upon was the most eloquent and damning indictment of the UK’s aversion to getting to grips with serious infrastructure issues that I could imagine.

Reading the Standard last night with the news that Boris would not be averse to supporting Stansted’s expansion were that to be cheaper, simpler and more readily deliverable, there was (of course) the addendum that previous attempts at expanding STN had triggered massive opposition from local (N Essex, S Suffolk) Tories. That’s the relative attraction of the north Kent marshes/Isle of Grain: ducks don’t vote.

[NTarrant]

Don’t be too sure on the ducks Anthony, the Brent Geese stopped Portsmouth football club from moving its ground.

Bucksnet is right about the M25, the Dartford crossings are already at high capacity and then add additional traffic from the East and North there would have to be further roads built and the problems that would bring.

We have had road widening on the main motorways and it causes congestion, but you can’t make an omlett without breaking eggs. Rail links are relatively easy to install at LHR than Boris island

[AnthonyDunn]

NTarrant – 18/12/2012 11:04 GMT

Don’t entirely concur on the rail links front WRT the Isle of Grain: HS1 is within a relatively short distance into central London and beyond plus it ought also to be perfectly possible to link onto Crossrail, which will have been built by then, for through running services to the west. That is without considering direct links to say the east coast mainline and other services.

Let’s face it, whatever, wherever, the cost is going to be substantial to provide an airport with say dual take-off and landing runways and a genuine 24/7 capability that would genuinely restore the UK to Eurohub primacy. This would represent a massive shot-in-the arm to the overall UK economy and assist with reorienting the economy away from smoke and mirrors dodgy financial services in the City.

BTW, can we ditch the “Boris Island” moniker please? It is inaccurate because building on mudflats does NOT involve creating an island in the middle of the Thames Estuary and secondly, it only serves to inflate an already gargantuan and grotesquely inflated reactionary right-wing ego.

[Edited]

[transtraxman]

Yes. the terminology should reflect the variety of options, which is why I favour, the (Thames) Estuary airport.

[AnthonyDunn]

transtraxman – 18/12/2012 15:57 GMT

And my own preference for calling it the Winston S. Churchill – Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani Qatar Sovereign Wealth Fund Eurohub International airport (London). Have I covered all bases….?

[transtraxman]

quite so – though you might have missed out one sheik´s nephew along the way.

[VintageKrug]

I much prefer the Margaret Hilda Thatcher Atlantic Bridgehead Airport.

Catchy, too, n’est ce pas….?!

[SimonS1]

It all sounds a great idea in theory, however remember Heathrow T5 took 20 years from start of planning to opening.

If one terminal takes that long I wouldn’t bank on anything at Boris Island this side of 2050 bearing in mind all the infrastructure required.

[canucklad]

My nomination for the name of the new airport is ……

The JM Barrie International Airport! !

[TerryMcManus24]

The JM Barrie International Airport!

Great…Best one yet

[VintageKrug]

“SimonS1 – 18/12/2012 17:51 GMT

It all sounds a great idea in theory, however remember Heathrow T5 took 20 years from start of planning to opening.

If one terminal takes that long I wouldn’t bank on anything at Boris Island this side of 2050 bearing in mind all the infrastructure required.”

..but T5 took so long principally because of the planning inquiries.

Cross party support would be needed to push through planning permission, and I believe the law is also being changed to reduce the opportunity for Judicial Review to get in the way of infrastructure projects.

The construction itself was relatively swift, even with the constraints of a small brownfield site, and two live runways either side.

No such constraints exist in the Estuary (just the unexploded bombs which need addressing, really).

Sydney had its network of underground motorways up and running in a decade. HEx took about five years. Not insurmountable.

[SimonS1]

Cross party support – that’s a laugh given how split the Conservatives are on their own. Cameron and Johnson miles apart on the issue and one transport secretary already fired for opposing Cameron’s Heathrow expansion game. Layer in here the Lib Dems, Greens, protesters, change of government, financing, cost overruns etc and it won’t happen in a hurry.

Any changes to the law are a long way off, the government has only announced plans for a consultation exercise so if anything happens before the election that will be a miracle. Anyhow it seems Cameron has much bigger legislative priorities at this stage (eg gay marriage).

Sydney is a bit different, not encumbered by the layers of EU induced bureaucracy relating to tenders (which on the basis of things like Thameslink will ensure the bulk of any jobs created will not go to British people).

In an case isn’t Thameslink 2000 on target to deliver in 2018? And the current proposals for Crossrail go back at least 20 years before construction. Not to mention HS2 which won’t happen until 2026 at the earliest (slipping back steadily until a decision is made to go ahead). In other words our record in this area is not exactly sparkling.

[Bucksnet]

Forget planning permission and inquiries. Nothing trumps primary legislation in a sovereign state, but then again we are in the EU.

[Author]

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