Costs for travelling by plane could also increase, but for the passenger, as a new runway would cost the airport large sums of money and these costs may be passed on to the consumer probably in the form of ticket prices although in all probability these increases would occur slowly over a long period of time.
Homes may also be lost as room would need to be created to make space for a new runway as well as any graded or listed buildings and/or any heritage sites. This would be a deficit for not only the local community but also the local economy as sites, which the area depended on for tourism, could be lost.
House prices surrounding the immediate areas around Leeds – Bradford Airport would be also likely to suffer putting the owners at a disadvantage when selling their houses in the future.
In conclusion, the following disadvantages would likely occur if a new runway was constructed at Leeds – Bradford Airport.
- Many hectares of agricultural land could be lost.
- Green belt land could be lost.
- Local wildlife and plant horticulture could be affected adversely.
- Noise pollution would increase.
- Air pollution would increase.
- Ticket prices could rise.
- Homes, local heritage sites, and graded or listed buildings may be lost.
- House prices surrounding Leeds – Bradford could fall
- Traffic on roads around and to the airport could increase.
Benefits
As well as disadvantages there are also many advantages to building a new runway at Leeds – Bradford. Primarily it would increase employment both in the area and out. The sudden increase of aeroplanes using the airport would bring about a need for additional baggage handlers, refuelling workers e.t.c. thus providing more employment for the immediate surrounding area. Areas outside of Leeds may also benefit as workers required to build the new runway may live outside the city as I imagine work such as this would require specific skills probably not available close to the area. When the new runway at Stansted was proposed the government claimed that the estimated increase in employment would be from 10000 in 1998 to 53000 in 2030 (although these figures are likely to be overestimates.)
Local road and rail services may also improve to accommodate for the increase in passengers using the airport. This would be beneficial to the local population as well as anyone using the airport including the staff.
An increase in regional economic growth could come about owing to an increased use of the airport by passengers and an increase of the number of flights being flown from and to Leeds – Bradford Airport. This means more revenue for the airport and the separate companies within the airport as well as shareholders and people involved indirectly with the business.
Air travel made easier by a new runway could make Leeds more accessible to tourists from overseas furthermore bettering the economy.
More national and international destinations could become available, granting passengers in the Leeds - Bradford area with more choice as to where they are able to go on holiday. In addition to this some low cost airlines such as Easyjet and BMI baby who do not currently fly to some destinations from Leeds – Bradford will then be able to and these and to these destinations the ticket prices could decrease (due to competition between airlines.) This benefits the customer inevitably.
Businesses in the Leeds and Bradford areas would too profit from a new runway as faster, more reliable transport links with other businesses both nationally and internationally would create economies of scale within their businesses. Improved flexibility to reach customers and prospects allows for an increase in time efficiency thus the business as a whole becomes more efficient.
The creation of more business in Leeds and Bradford could be brought on by the construction of a new runway. Business leaders have ranked external transport links in the top three factors for business location hence a new runway could attract new commerce to locate here consequently creating more jobs for residents in the surrounding area.
The wide range of destinations and frequency of flights from the UK have helped the country become the top European destination for inward investment. These factors improved as a result of a new runway would allow further investment in the UK thus helping the economy moreover.
External economies of scale would likely be created if a new runway was built as it would allow extra planes of larger sizes into the country through Leeds – Bradford Airport that would permit more flights to run more often. The expansion of the airport could result in a subsequent decrease in costs for companies working within the airport, for example the new runway would allow businesses to have better choices over which airline exports their goods to other countries so therefore a cheaper airline may be chosen. (Only relevant to manufacturing industry within the airport.) They may also benefit from an increase in the number of passengers using the airport since they may sell more goods (if duty free) or take out more clients (car hire, hotel rooms e.t.c.) Lower input costs may also be achieved by effective utilization of staff. A new runway would mean more flights, so more people would be using the airport at any given time. The increased level of passengers would occupy staff for longer periods rather than them sitting around during times when the airport is less busy. In conclusion, the following advantages would likely occur if a new runway was constructed at Leeds – Bradford Airport.
- Employment levels in both Leeds and Bradford could rise as would employment levels outside of Leeds and Bradford.
- Local road and rail services could improve.
- Regional economic growth could occur as might economic growth for the whole of the U.K.
- More national and international destinations available to fly to and easier air travel as a result.
- An increased rate of flights to and from Leeds – Bradford Airport more often.
- Local businesses could achieve economies of scale through increased time efficiency in their employees.
- An increase in the number of businesses locating in Leeds could occur.
- External economies of scale could be achieved within the airport.
- A decrease in costs and an increase in profit for businesses working within the airport could take effect.
Research on similar situation (Stansted)
In general the aviation industry:
1. Employs half a million people in UK,
2. Adds £10bn to UK GDP per year,
3. 180 million passengers use UK airports every year,
4. For every one million passengers, 1,000 airport jobs and 2,000 supply chain workers are sustained and
5. One fifth of UK exports are by air.
To understand properly what would be likely to occur if a new runway was built at Leeds – Bradford Airport it would be necessary to look at a similar case that has happened in the past. I will use the example of Stansted for this mini – analysis.
At maximum capacity, the expanded airport could process 80 million passengers per annum and a significant proportion of the UK's freight traffic. This scale of operation would generate more than 50,000 new jobs in an area with virtually no unemployment, necessitating the construction of a similar number of new houses to accommodate the population growth.
Annotated from
Stop Stansted Expansion (“SSE”) was founded soon after the Government announced the consultation in July 2002. Being against the expansion program the following negative externalities were put forward against the case for a new runway.
People in an area 60 miles by 30 miles already complain about noise. Disturbance would increase with up to 4 times more flights, additional flight paths, and wider stacking areas. The impact of all those extra workers and passengers would place great strains on the road and rail networks. Higher concentrations of aircraft emissions would particularly affect children, the elderly, and those who already have respiratory problems. Air traffic control systems are already stretched at peak times, yet the Government is planning to more than double the volume of air traffic.
Annotated from
It seems that opposition against airport expansion at Stansted includes over 4,500 individuals and most local authorities whereas citizens favouring the move account for 11% in average of the local councils and the government.
Primary Information
If a new runway was to be proposed at Leeds – Bradford I can only say from the information that the public would consider it an unnecessary waste and be wholly against the move. In exploration of this theory I have included a set of small questionnaires put forward to the public asking for their opinion on the matter (Pages 4 – 8.)
The results from the questionnaire show that:
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100% thought a new runway would benefit the country’s economy but one person added that they thought it would detriment the local economy.
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80% thought that a new runway would benefit them personally if built at Leeds – Bradford Airport.
All in all most of the persons asked were supportive towards the construction of a new runway although 40% commented on the air and noise pollution it would create.
Conclusion
In order to amount to a fair decision as to whether or not a new runway should be built, it is necessary to consider the effects that opening a new runway would have on the stakeholders, namely a cost/benefit analysis. Stakeholders of a business are the groups of people that are affected by the actions that a business takes and therefore it is likely that any move the business makes will affect them above anybody else.
The internal stakeholders should probably be affected the most as they are the ones who are directly involved in the running of the business. Most changes that affect the managers and stakeholders would be positive as most of the profits go to them. A new runway though would mean greater responsibility and greater measures would need to be made to keep the business running smoothly. Workers in the business are unlikely to be affected in any major way. It is possible that a slight rise in pay could take affect but this is unlikely and the improved transport links and road services as a result of the new runway might aid the workers in travelling to and from the airport. Unfortunately the new runway would generate a larger accumulation of traffic on the roads that would affect both the internal and external stakeholders namely the workers and the local community. Suppliers to the airport and the businesses within it would grow as orders would get larger as the amount of aeroplanes using the airport increased.
Taking into consideration the advantages and disadvantages to building a new runway at Leeds – Bradford Airport I have come to the conclusion that the business venture is a sound one. However it is a fact that aviation is the U.K’s fastest growing source of Carbon Dioxide emissions and it is probable that a new runway would add to these discharges. Unless the emissions were somehow minimized than I doubt that the runway would be environmentally viable anyway. Houses close to the airport e.g. Horsforth, Yeadon e.t.c. subjected to increased noise levels are likely to decrease in value but it is probable that the property owners would be subsidized in one way or another by the government to
ensure that when it came to selling their house they would not be at a disadvantage.
Augmented levels of noise pollution are bound to irritate local residents but the economical benefits and need of expansion overcome the small discrepancies a new runway would produce if the move went ahead. I think it would assist the North’s growth immensely by way of new businesses locating here as well as helping Britain along to becoming an example for others to follow.