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Egypt Holidays > Travel News > Stansted to increase passengers numbers to 40 million
Stansted to increase passengers numbers to 40 million | | 4th July 2008 |
The controversial plan put forward by BAA for a second Stanstead runway will be sent to public inquiry by ministers this coming week. At the same time, the company will be permitted to increase passenger numbers at the airport significantly.
It's possible that passenger numbers could rise from 23.5 million up to 40 million, following a decision by the ministers to abolish current restrictions - and to allow an increase in flight numbers.
Sending the £2.3 billion, second runway question to public inquiry means that a final decision will not be reached until at least 2011. The transport secretary, Ruth Kelly, is expected to publicly announce these two Stansted plans later this week.
Supporters of Stanstead's expansion call the moves significant in the implementation of the government's 2003 white paper on aviation, which called for congestion at airports in the south-east to be alleviated by new runways at Stanstead and Heathrow – with Stanstead's to be scheduled first.
While the runway question is being decided, BAA is pushing for current passenger number limits to be lifted. Stanstead Airport is now limited to 25 million passengers per year, and last year it handled 23.5 million.
BAA is calling for limits on passenger numbers to be scrapped, and replaced by limits on the number of flights.
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