Mr. Colin Mathews has confirmed that he would continue to push for a new runway at Heathrow Airport. He said that a new runway means that Britain would be more connected. Heathrow has been experiencing growth in passenger numbers with February 2014 having had 4.9 million passengers using the airport. The airport has also launched a new direct flight to Colombia.
The CEO said that they will not be launching new flights until more runways are added. This way they are able to give the increasing customers quality travel services. The new runway is set to be constructed north west of the current location.
This comes shortly after other Heathrow bosses admitted that a new runway is a divisive matter. The airport had just carried a public opinion survey on home owners around the airport. The director of public affairs, Mr.Nigel Milton said that the public is divided on whether or not a third runway should be constructed. He added that it would be easier to decide if people had one particular opinion.
The consultation is set to end on 16th March, then the commission will decide whether to recommend for the construction of a third airport. The government will be required to approve as they see fit. The Airport commision chair said an additional runway will lead to increased aviation capacity.
The royal borough has accused Heathrow bosses of presenting biased information on the survey. They said their concern is how the airport will house 142,500 new workers that will come with an additional runway. They urged the commission to look into other details of concern that are not being presented by the airport consultation team. They added that additional staff will need houses near the airport hence causing shortage of homes in the area. They also complained that some of the information presented was not factual.