Birmingham Airport Expansion plans

Full planning permission has been granted for the 400 metre extension of the runway at Birmingham Airport. Conditional approval was originally given by Solihull Council back in December 2008. The council has now given full approval with certain conditions attached.

Some of the criteria Birmingham International Airport will have to meet include new noise and environmental pollution controls. There will be new restrictions on night flights to and from the airport. The airport authority is also committed to a 20 year plan to spend £10,000 a year on tree planting around the airport.

Transport links are also included in the brief as a condition for the runway extension. These will include £90 million to be spent on rail infrastructure around the region, as well as a commitment by Network Rail to the £600 million upgrade of Birmingham’s New Street station.

Whilst the announcement has been welcomed by the local community, the impact of the plans will not be felt for a while yet as plans are finalised. However once work starts in earnest, the plans will a large positive economic impact on the region. The airport itself will benefit from being able to develop a larger long haul network, with destinations to California and the Far East.