Airline passengers could face higher fares to help cover Heathrow expansion costs

  • Passengers could face higher fares to cover the costs of expanding Heathrow
  • Critics fear the airport will raise the amount it charges airlines for landing slots
  • Transport Secretary Chris Grayling insisted yesterday that the expansion will be privately funded

Passengers could face higher fares to help cover the costs of expanding Heathrow, officials have admitted.

In documents published yesterday, the Government also confirmed that holidaymakers who drive to the airport could be hit with a congestion charge in an effort to curb pollution.

Transport Secretary Chris Grayling insisted yesterday that Heathrow’s expansion will be privately funded, but critics fear the airport will raise the amount it charges airlines for landing slots to help fund the project – with costs then passed on to passengers in the form of higher fares.

Transport Secretary Chris Grayling announced the Heathrow plans had been approved in a statement to MPs yesterday

Mr Grayling repeated his 2016 commitment to ‘keep charges close to current levels’, while Heathrow has vowed to oblige.

But documents published by the Government have fuelled concerns that passengers could still end up being hit. Following pressure from the Commons transport committee, the Department for Transport said the Civil Aviation Authority could ‘not be bound by any cap on charges’.

And the documents also claim that ‘the introduction of a congestion or access charge for road vehicles should be considered’.

IAG, which owns British Airways, said the Government had ‘missed an opportunity to provide the UK with the airport it needs at a price it can afford’.

 

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