Boris Johnson refloats idea of Thames Estuary airport 18 months after it was rejected by Airports Commission

Plans: Boris Johnson is still keen on an airport in Thames Estuary
Yui Mok/PA Wire
Laura Proto20 March 2016

Boris Johnson has attempted to resurrect the possibility of a new airport in the Thames Estuary 18 months after the idea was officially rejected by the Airports Commission.

The so-called Boris Island scheme was ruled out as one of the shortlisted options for airport expansion in September 2014.

But the Mayor of London's office has published a report which claims a four-runway hub either in the Thames Estuary or at an expanded Stansted Airport is the only way to secure the number of new routes required to boost the UK economy.

Mr Johnson believes a hub in the east of the capital would offer around double the number of long haul and domestic routes served by Heathrow while exposing 95 per cent fewer people to significant aircraft noise.

He said: "If we are to secure the connectivity we need to support our future growth and prosperity - and do so without dire impacts on public health - then we must do better than Heathrow."

Bold plan: An artist’s impression of Boris Johnson’s idea for a four-runway estuary airport
Foster + Partners/PA

The Government is yet to decide whether to back expansion at Heather, which is the Airports Commission’s recommendation, or at Gatwick.

The 78-page document produced by the mayor's office, titled Landing The Right Airport, says a four-runway hub would serve 114 daily long haul routes in 2050, compared with 75 at a three-runway Heathrow.

A report prepared for the commission warned that the estuary plan posed a "significant cost and risk to the taxpayer".

But the mayor's chief adviser on aviation, Daniel Moylan, told the Press Association the burden on taxpayers of a third runway at Heathrow would not be "very much lower" than the cost of a new airport.

He said an estuary airport would cost around £20 billion to 25 billion - with an additional £25 billion required for road and rail connections - while a third runway at Heathrow is estimated to cost £18.6 billion.

The mayor's report calculated that the surface access improvements required to enable Heathrow to expand without "significant consequences" for congestion and crowding would be more than four times the figure estimated by the Airports Commission, at up to £20 billion.

The commission did not take into account necessary schemes such as a direct rail link between the west London airport and Waterloo station or the cost of maintaining new roads and tunnels up to 2050, according to the mayor's office.

Mr Johnson said: "We need a long-term vision for the right airport that sustains our economy and safeguards our public health. I would urge Government not to turn its back on our future."

Asked about the probability of the estuary airport going ahead, Mr Moylan said: "The likelihood of closing down Heathrow - and these arguments will help in doing that - is quite high.

"After that, everything is up for grabs."

Mr Johnson, who is also Conservative MP for Uxbridge and South Ruislip, is stepping down as mayor in May.

Additional reporting by Press Association.

Create a FREE account to continue reading

eros

Registration is a free and easy way to support our journalism.

Join our community where you can: comment on stories; sign up to newsletters; enter competitions and access content on our app.

Your email address

Must be at least 6 characters, include an upper and lower case character and a number

You must be at least 18 years old to create an account

* Required fields

Already have an account? SIGN IN

By clicking Create Account you confirm that your data has been entered correctly and you have read and agree to our Terms of use , Cookie policy and Privacy policy .

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged in