Leeds: Council Scraps Airport Link Road Proposals

Leeds: Council Scraps Airport Link Road Proposals

Traffic queuing on the A65 in Yeadon today

Airport Support Members Dismayed

After years of debate and public consultations Leeds City Council has abandoned plans for a £100m link road to Leeds Bradford Airport. The original plans showed three different options, two were direct links to the airport from the A65 at Horsforth, one was to upgrade the existing road network surrounding the airport. The news has come as a great shock to those who for years have demanded action to improve access to the airport.

Leeds City Council says it intends to continue to pursue proposals to build a new airport parkway station close to the airport but it's difficult to see how this can be achieved without building a new road to facilitate the proposals. If the council were to install a half baked version of a road link to the proposed parkway station, it would likely increase commuter traffic on the route by drivers seeking to avoid the very road systems the cancelled project was seeking to ease.

The Airport Support Group founder said: "today's news, which I heard on the car radio whilst queuing in traffic (in Yeadon!), has put a real dampener on Christmas.", "As for the lack of support, the devil is in the detail. Of all the options, it was Option A, that got 40% support".

Forums4airports member said: "I cannot see the logic in cancelling the link road from the A65. It would reduce the amount of traffic up to Rawdon traffic lights and on to the airport. This backward thinking reminds me of the '80's"

Another Forums4airports member said: "whilst the railway station good news the lack of ability to greatly reduce local traffic has been ignored."

 

As I said in an earlier post LCC seems to have reverted to type a far as LBA is concerned and in an even earlier post I said that they are copying York in their active discrimination against vehicular traffic. No investment and a couldn't care less attitude about relieving traffic local to the airport is very evident with this decision. All they are doing with this, by rejecting all three proposals, is encouraging more people to travel over the hill and squash any growth at LBA. I fear for the terminal improvements and the aim of attracting new routes (city in particular) now. How is that supporting local businesses? I am lost for words.

All a park and ride station will do is encourage more traffic on local roads that aren't up to the job but with the "advantage" of lowering the number of cars using the city itself. Job done LCC. Congrats.

 

I think what annoys me most about this is the council haven't just shelved the link road proposal they have cancelled it. If the powers that be had thought this through properly they should have put the project on hold.

 

I thought that the £173m Govt money from the cancelled supertram project was to be used on this link road and the parkway rail station. Seems not! What is it to be used on??

 

In true LCC style they will probably lose the money entirely. Nothing would amaze me right now. Best case scenario, LCC are probably drumming up a pan city cycle highway that nobody will use.

 

Just updating this, it now appears that the council has axed the complete end to end link road but now intend to develop the Northern end only, providing a link from the A658 to the airport and also to any Park and Ride facility at the proposed Parkway Station. There could also be an upgrade to White House Lane as they do intend to press ahead with the employment hub on land to the rear of the Avro factory. That said, it will do nothing to remove traffic from Victoria Avenue and Yeadon. I wonder how long it will be before the people who complained and didn't support the link road proposal, start complaining again about the traffic problems in Yeadon, and, (no doubt) blame the airport for it. These people need a good shaking sometimes! I imagine they are preparing their placards for Thursday at the Civic Hall as I type this.

 

If that is the case what about Scotland Lane. Surely it would not take the volume of traffic that will be going to the Park and Ride AND the employment hub if coming from the south end. It seems mad to me!

 

Just updating this, it now appears that the council has axed the complete end to end link road but now intend to develop the Northern end only, providing a link from the A658 to the airport and also to any Park and Ride facility at the proposed Parkway Station. There could also be an upgrade to White House Lane as they do intend to press ahead with the employment hub on land to the rear of the Avro factory. That said, it will do nothing to remove traffic from Victoria Avenue and Yeadon. I wonder how long it will be before the people who complained and didn't support the link road proposal, start complaining again about the traffic problems in Yeadon, and, (no doubt) blame the airport for it. These people need a good shaking sometimes! I imagine they are preparing their placards for Thursday at the Civic Hall as I type this.

You can`t fix stupid Heather can you?

 

Well I supported option 3 but I will not be happy with more traffic under the tunnel as it is already blocked from about 1530 most days !