Not for the first time half of bedfordshire comes to a standstill due to the airport infrastructure

When I used to sit on the passenger services sub committee I used to ask what contingency plans existed to get passengers into and out of the airport if the tunnel was blocked. I guess today I got my answer.:{
Big story now on BBC Three Counties with passengers being interviewed who can't get in or out.

Traffic jams on the A505 now all the way back onto the M1

BBC reporting that the exit slip roads at juction 10 of the M1 now closed in both directions due to the flooding in the tunnel. Also Gypsy Lane closed due to airport congestion. The airports worst ever traffic jam me thinks:( The airport is paralysed.

Airport website reports road now open and traffic moving .. but with delays.

With its single barrier, the drop off area can only process around 9 cars a minute. That is assuming that cars entering the area can find some kerb space. This problem is going to last hours. Also the A505 closes tonight for roadworks and won’t reopen until Monday.

Bit melodramatic, LTNman. I got out not 10mins after your missive and was non-stop all the way to Stopsley. I dare say it wasn't good trying to get in to the airport at the time but the were giving priority to getting all the jam out of the central area. The police and airport staff were doing a good job.

ATCO. Think you need to listen to the live radio reports from passengers who have been trying for hours to get to the airport.

Passenger Services Sub-committee? Ah yes - that interesting bunch of individuals who used to think that a portakabin would make a nice Domestic Terminal... :p
LTN isn't the only airport to be connected to the 'outside' world by a road tunnel. There have been vehicle fires and breakdowns in the Heathrow Road Tunnel that have brought similar chaos to LHR (in the case of a vehicle fire, they can't use the other bore for obvious safety reasons).
True, there's an alternative service road tunnel that connects LHR's Central Terminal Area with the south side Perimeter Road but it's not available for 'public' use because of security (it's northern portal is within the RZ).
The fact that the rest of Luton and South Beds ground to a halt is nothing to do with LTN or LLAO but - yet again - is entirely due to the lack of earlier adequate road planning and construction by the morons in LBC and Beds CC (and the same thing happens every time the M1 is closed at Junction 10 or 11).
So don't blame LTN - blame the thoroughly inept local highway authorities!!! :ugh:

Actually it was the airport managers that used a portakabin as an airside toilet block for gates 1-6

It was the airports managers that refused to put up proper bus shelters that protected passengers from the weather claiming that if the terminal had to be evacuated it would cause pinch points. They then put up railings all over the central area.

Serving on the committee was a complete waste of time. We could not even get two no smoking stickers placed on all the bins inside the terminal. Every bin had one sticker that always seemed to face the wall. Just getting a clock that showed the right time was also impossible :(

So who is responsible for the inner road network and the single entry barrier? Can't blame the local highways authority for that can we?:=

So the road under the taxiway flooded again! It has been a while since it last happened, but this is hardly the first time. The difference today is that Luton now handles significantly more passengers than it did the last time it occurred. So more folk are disadvantaged.

Blame the regime that decided on a cul-de-sac road access to the current tinminal location back in the early 90's, compounded by a tunnel under a taxiway as the only way in and out. Needless to say those responsible are far, far away from Luton now!

Heathrow was mostly cut off today as their road tunnels and underground systems also flooded.

Much of the water in the tunnel was being fed from the taxiway above. All seems to be part of the airports drainage plan with permanent concrete sand bags directing water down paving slabs by the edge of the tunnel onto the road below.

CAP493 So they could not have planned that a tunnel that is taking water from both sides of the road AND a large taxiway, might fill up?

So they could not have planned to have suitable channels to discharge the taxiway water elsewhere?

So they could not have planned to put suitable pumps into the tunnel infrastructure to handle peak volumes of water?

So a group of civil servants did not ensure that a commercial organisation met the highest standards of construction?

As a result of their failure, they have lost money and reputation.

OK - tell me what I missed?

The airport did do something. Before they installed permanent concrete sandbags and paving slabs to direct water from above, heavy rain used to wash mud and rocks onto the road below. :confused:

I can remember when the tunnel first opened and seeing a car that was all but submerged. In those days though the old access route was still open so it caused no disruption.

Could not an emergency road crossing be provided across the taxiway between the bridge and the fire station? No doubt I will be ridiculed here but in Gibraltar the main road onto the rock crosses the Runway.

Wrong kind of rain
 

But it always rains in UK, so why the big surprise.

Perhaps the LTN tunnel was designed as a drainage ditch, to carry all of the sewage from luton elsewhere...sorry could not resis this.

It seems not - something to do with security and restricted/controlled zones, we're led to believe. :suspect:
That's the whole point - the design of LTN's Central Terminal Area was drawn up and implemented during the time when the Airport was owned and operated by LBC, and the mangement involved, employed by LIA. The plans were also approved by LBC and the Highways Authority. So the fault doesn't just lie with former LTN's former thoroughly inept mangement. :hmm:
Thanks for a most constructive comment formerijmpilot :rolleyes: - so what exactly is your point? :confused:
Agreed, as I said above - but what's the access to STN from the 'public' road connection if not a cul-de-sac? So too the road access to both the North and South terminals at LGW where these leave the 'public' road system - and at peak times, the traffic there can back up onto the M23.

The cul de sac access is bad enough, but to design it to go below ground level was asking for trouble. This tunnel has flooded before and no doubt it will flood again. Since the last major flooding, I wonder how much grass area has been removed as this can act as a sponge?

The intensity and for the period of this extraordinary rain, it is not surprising that there was flooding, not only at the airport, but down in the town as well.

As for the congestion in the TMA, well this will be entirely solved during the spring of 2009 :} well if it doesn't rain heavily thereafter!

Strange how Gibraltar, which is a British territory is exempt


That's right, Luton ATC also played their part. The CTA was meant to be a lot larger with the taxiway over the road located around where the Holiday Inn Express ends and their extended car park begins. Luton ATC objected so an opportunity was lost. I even have an artist impression somewhere that shows a BA Express ATR42 crossing the road close to the Ibis Roundabout.

Just think how big the CTA could have been if the bridge had not been shifted.

Yes, and when the taxiway entered the back of the compass base all aircraft going to runway 26 (we didn't have twy Echo then) would have had to infringe the Rwy Strip and Cleared and Graded Area meaning they would have been held whilst there was a runway movement. In the case of an outbound aircraft, the arrival would then have to wait on the rwy whilst the outbound 'went around the corner'. A complete nightmare. Just because you have a pretty picture of it, LTNman, doesn't mean it was ever seriously considered.

If you don't know what you are talking about . . . . . :rolleyes:

Yes I know the idea was not practical but I just had to see how long it took one of you old tower boys to take the bait. Just over one hour, very good:E:E:E