Huge new transport hub for Airport

IAN BELL (left) with Bristol Airport CEO, Dave Lees.

It was interesting to attend the formal opening of the vast new transport interchange at Bristol Airport, one of our members, with its sweeping new roadways, 2,000 additional car park spaces, double the number of bus bays and a much larger drop off and pick up area.

The idea is to encourage more passengers to use public transport and to make it easier for travellers pulling heavy cases, so there are lifts from the car park and a level concourse to the busy terminal, with around 38,000 people expected to fly out or into the airport on the day I visited. It’s come a long way in 70 years since it moved to Lulsgate from Whitchurch.

During the formal ceremony, North Somerset Council Leader, Mike Bell, remarked that having a major regional airport in the district was a mixed blessing, which I thought was a fair remark.

Businesses are broadly supportive of the airport and its plans for expansion and our members in the accommodation, hospitality and retail sectors say they certainly benefit from being near neighbours. The airport is a major employer, with 5,500 staff currently on site, three quarters of whom live locally.  They also say they are keen to use local suppliers where possible, and I took the opportunity to pass a copy of our Chamber leaflet to CEO Dave Lees, to reinforce the wide range of goods and services that can be provided by our members.

On the other hand, as residents, we have to cope with some increase in the level of traffic and we don’t have the opportunity to use regular public transport. I raised that issue with a representative of the Bath Bus Company which runs a service from Bath to the airport, via Keynsham and Saltford. Some years back we had proposed some of the buses be diverted through the Chew Valley, but that suggestion was turned down on the grounds of likely low demand.

The Airport has already pledged to spend £400m on things like improved security, terminal expansion, toilets and EV charging stations and it is certain to look to future growth. The airport leadership is deeply committed to reducing emissions to achieve net zero status and they are very conscious of their impact on the locality. So, I’ll remain optimistic that future expansion can be achieved in a way that helps the local economy without overloading our rural infrastructure.