Quote: “The legal process will take longer than the election/fiscal cycle and there are more votes in No LHR expansion than for it so it's a constant temptation to politicians to do a Boris -and we all know how politcians are proof against temptation.....…”
Is there not is a fast-track procedure for “infrastructure of strategic national significance”? If so, best use it!
There’s not enough votes on this issue. Airport expansion is the number one political issue for just a handful of people so there’s not enough of them to make a constituency change hands. It’s no co-incidence that the anti-airport lobbying groups have never fielded candidates for election either at local or Parliamentary level. Moreover, there are only two marginal seats around the airport: Brentford and Isleworth and Richmond and Barnes.
Quote: “I strongly suspect we will not build any new civil runways in this country and we will have to figure out how to make the best of what we have now
Bigger planes carrying more people is the obvious answer”
In theory, yes, but in practice, business demands frequency on shorthaul routes and therefore smaller aircraft. They pay the premium fares that make profits for the airlines, so their needs have to be met.
Quote: “get the break even point between air and high speed train out to 500 miles for business and S France, Barcelona etc for leisure”
It’s not "either/or", and if there’s to be planning delays and judicial reviews just for 1 or 2 more rwys at LHR, imagine what it will be like for high speed rail. Suspect that there are marginal seats on that route, and many more people affected.
Quote: “Remember that the Japanese fly 747's on domestic routes due to shortage of capacity at Tokyo”
Indeed, in a country that’s had high speed rail since 1964! As mentioned above, it’s not "either/or".
Quote: “* laughs at the great clunking fist abolishing boom and bust”
Be fair! The great clunking fist abolishing Tory (sic) boom and bust, Shame it couldn’t do the same for Labour boom and bust. Ho hum.
Quote: “There is a slow realisation that the UK should not be held to ransom by a bunch of NIMBY's who own property and spend some time in West London.”
Exactly right, and these people are nowhere near the rwy thresholds where it could be argued that there is a noise problem.
If Call-Me-Dave is correct about Labour being in the pocket of UNITE, can we assume that Labour will support LHR expansion, bearing in mind that. UNITE, (or in other words, the former T&GW), is very big on the airport.
Last edited by Fairdealfrank; 18th Jul 2013 at 19:51.