New Plymouth Airport?

[Biggs]

The M5 does not need extending - it would cause untold environmental damage to a beautiful area to upgrade the a38 to motorway grade, cut off lots of smaller towns that currently have access to it and it is completely unnecessary- travel volumes halve once the m5 splits into the A30 and the A38. As a regular user there is rarely a problem with volume of traffic on a38 (the problems all happen on the m5 and a30)

Agree with that, to be honest.

Never really seen the issue, especially as it's three lanes for large stretches anyway. Far more important is the train line.

 

[lesritson]

Give it up....That ship has sailed, Plymouth have had the opportunity to become the Regional Airport but due to shortsightedness on behalf of owners, potential investors and Plymouth City Council who allowed Exeter to start from scratch and overtake Plymouth in the airline stakes.I can't see anyone wanting to invest millions in a city that obviously didn't support the airport when it was there ....nothing has changed except that Exeter is up and running as the regional airport.

 

[David Fisher]

It’s 50 mins to Exeter airport - there are plenty of major cities that it takes that long to get to their airport - realistically we should be campaigning for an expansion of Exeter and better public transport links from there to Plymouth

I agree, it's taken me longer to get from Gatwick to Croydon than Exeter to Plymouth. A dedicated Bus Service to Exeter Airport or Train / Tramline would help.
I use Bristol Airport frequently and take the Falcon 24 / 7 Service. It does stops at the Exeter Park and Rides but would require a bit of a faff to get to the Airport. Bristol Airport it drops off literally outside the Departures Entrance.

I don't drive so it's train to Exeter St Davids then a very slow local bus out to the airport.

The Falcon takes a similar time to Exeter but then it's the same very slow local bus out to the airport.

As is always the case the trains & buses don't connect very well & when you factor in the length of time you have to be at the airport before your flight time and extra time for possible delays / cancellations I find I have to leave home about 5 hours before flight time.

 

[Biggs]

I don't drive so it's train to Exeter St Davids then a very slow local bus out to the airport.

It is insane that you have to do that, from the region's biggest city to the region's major airport.

There HAS to be a shuttle, I guess it's politically problematic though, because it would be admitting that a Plymouth airport is dead.

 

[Lundan Cabbie]

I don't drive so it's train to Exeter St Davids then a very slow local bus out to the airport.

It is insane that you have to do that, from the region's biggest city to the region's major airport.

There HAS to be a shuttle, I guess it's politically problematic though, because it would be admitting that a Plymouth airport is dead.

The runway length at the Plymouth Airport site along with the lack of expansion space is the reason why it could never be more than a regional airport and could never compete with Exeter.

The final demise was Gatwick and London City raising landing fees which meant the small aircraft needed for the short runway were no longer economically viable and without the popular London service, Plymouth Airport lasted just another six months. Without a longer runway the site will remain dead.

 

[Green since 89]

The M5 does not need extending - it would cause untold environmental damage to a beautiful area to upgrade the a38 to motorway grade, cut off lots of smaller towns that currently have access to it and it is completely unnecessary- travel volumes halve once the m5 splits into the A30 and the A38. As a regular user there is rarely a problem with volume of traffic on a38 (the problems all happen on the m5 and a30)

Agree with that, to be honest.

Never really seen the issue, especially as it's three lanes for large stretches anyway. Far more important is the train line.

I don't think that the A38 needs major surgery but a few of the sections do need replacing and it would be great if a lot junctions could be merged together and local roads re-routed over/under the A38. There should also be more lighting (starting with the Parkway) - yes let's use renewable energy for this. It's not so much that there is a lot of traffic but as a relatively traffic-free (mostly) dual carriageway it should be quicker and easier to navigate. Unless I am mistaken an extension of the M5 would have to be a brand new road, as motorways need to have a back-up A road in place. Upgrading the A38 would therefore be the most cost-effective way of improving the road connection.

I'd love to see the Dawlish Avoiding Route train line built to speed up the rail connection (a re-opened Okehampton route would probably be slower than the current one as the trains would have to ascend to almost 1,000ft above sea-level). When the whole region was cut off by rail in 2014 due to the storms a year before the General Election, David Cameron still decided that the current set-up was the best option once he had taken a look at the pricings for the alternatives. I guess people are more environmentally minded these days though so you never know.

 

[Emu]

Londan Cabbie is right.
I used to work very close to London City airport and the majority of planes that used to take off and land were private jets or propeller jobs to Luxembourg or small places.

These days, all you see land there is BA Airbuses or 737s', 747etc

 

[HerthaBSC]

The M5 does not need extending - it would cause untold environmental damage to a beautiful area to upgrade the a38 to motorway grade, cut off lots of smaller towns that currently have access to it and it is completely unnecessary- travel volumes halve once the m5 splits into the A30 and the A38. As a regular user there is rarely a problem with volume of traffic on a38 (the problems all happen on the m5 and a30)

Agree with that, to be honest.

Never really seen the issue, especially as it's three lanes for large stretches anyway. Far more important is the train line.

I don't think that the A38 needs major surgery but a few of the sections do need replacing and it would be great if a lot junctions could be merged together and local roads re-routed over/under the A38. There should also be more lighting (starting with the Parkway) - yes let's use renewable energy for this. It's not so much that there is a lot of traffic but as a relatively traffic-free (mostly) dual carriageway it should be quicker and easier to navigate. Unless I am mistaken an extension of the M5 would have to be a brand new road, as motorways need to have a back-up A road in place. Upgrading the A38 would therefore be the most cost-effective way of improving the road connection.

I'd love to see the Dawlish Avoiding Route train line built to speed up the rail connection (a re-opened Okehampton route would probably be slower than the current one as the trains would have to ascend to almost 1,000ft above sea-level). When the whole region was cut off by rail in 2014 due to the storms a year before the General Election, David Cameron still decided that the current set-up was the best option once he had taken a look at the pricings for the alternatives. I guess people are more environmentally minded these days though so you never know.

South West Devon is seriously starved of infrastructure investment. A dual carriageway is not enough capacity at peak times now, so what happens in 10-15 years?

Further along the route, what about the tamar bridge, a major pinch point now, so what's it going to be like in 15yrs?

It all points to a neglected region really, with economic impact, including to the prospects for our Club.

 

[Biggs]

Aren’t younger people driving less?

Fixing the public transport (shuttle bus and train line) is more important imo.

 

[memory man]

Londan Cabbie is right.
I used to work very close to London City airport and the majority of planes that used to take off and land were private jets or propeller jobs to Luxembourg or small places.

These days, all you see land there is BA Airbuses or 737s', 747etc

Well, every day is a learning day. I had not realised that London City could take Jumbos and airbuses. I genuinely thought it was just for Brymon-style (that dates me!!) planes. I am astounded that such big aircraft can overfly the routes into London City.

 

[Bermudian Green]

Exeter Airport is Kees than an hour from Plymouth. When I lived in London I used to have to allow two hours to get to the airport. What we are lacking in Plymouth is not our own airport but better transport limks to both Exeter and Newquay.

Exactly. What we need are fast links between the existing airports to Plymouth.

 

[Guiri Green]

I don't drive so it's train to Exeter St Davids then a very slow local bus out to the airport.

It is insane that you have to do that, from the region's biggest city to the region's major airport.

There HAS to be a shuttle, I guess it's politically problematic though, because it would be admitting that a Plymouth airport is dead.

The runway length at the Plymouth Airport site along with the lack of expansion space is the reason why it could never be more than a regional airport and could never compete with Exeter.

The final demise was Gatwick and London City raising landing fees which meant the small aircraft needed for the short runway were no longer economically viable and without the popular London service, Plymouth Airport lasted just another six months. Without a longer runway the site will remain dead.

The Landing Slots are always an Assett for the Parent Company as well. I think there might be an aspect of that in the Flybe Issue as well considering the might of the Companies behind them.

I was once told of a rumour that something similar happened to Plymouth Airport and it was deliberately mismanaged to free the destination slots and the area for potential other use. Although I believe there are currently restrictions on that.

 

[dennis the menace]

I hear there is a strong possibility that the airport will reopen soon. Initially it will be for business and private aviation only.

 

[HerthaBSC]

I hear there is a strong possibility that the airport will reopen soon. Initially it will be for business and private aviation only.

That's good news.

There's a bit of tumbleweed to clear first :tumbleweed:

 

[Bryan Tregunna]

More than £40m of EU funding paid for the airport terminal and other facilities at Newquay airport and a further £20m for upgrading parts of the A30.
I hope we have similar funding outside the EU for such regional projects.