Proposal for a new Bradford-Leeds Airport Parkway Station (on existing line)

[BigCj34]

why is the mere fact that you have to catch a bus to the airport that a waste of money? On that metric we best shut Luton Airport Parkway. Perhaps we ought to have a look at Birmingham international also. Teesside Airport will also have to go. Oh hang on.................



I think your political antenna may need a tune up!

Luton Airport is getting a direct train link and Birmingham International already has one. Teeside's shuttle bus service had little demand to sustain it.

 

[Bantamzen]

Worth pointing out that any separate spur for the Airport would mean any train running on the Leeds - Horsforth corridor serving the Airport would be doing so at the expense of Harrogate/ Knaresborough, which is quite an Opportunity Cost.



If Leeds-Bradford was a prestigious airport with four runways and hundreds of lucrative business flights then I could understand your frustration.

Instead, it's the airport equivalent of a two platform train station with only a plastic bus shelter for facilities, which is why there's not a rush to build anything.

https://insideflyer.co.uk/2018/01/what-are-the-busiest-airports-in-the-uk/

1. Heathrow: 75,991,000
2. Gatwick: 43,686,000
3. Manchester: 26,018,000
4. Stansted: 24,365,000
5. Luton: 15,002,000
6. Edinburgh: 12,471,000
7. Birmingham: 11,832,000
8. Glasgow: 9,392,000
9. Bristol: 7,721,000
10. Belfast International: 5,315,000
11. Newcastle: 4,883,000
12. Liverpool: 4,782,000
13. East Midlands: 4,708,000
14. London City: 4,540,000
15. Leeds Bradford: 3,669,000
16. Aberdeen: 2,951,000
17. Belfast City: 2,647,000
18. Southampton: 1,982,000
19. Cardiff: 1,347,000
20. Doncaster Sheffield: 1,296,000

Even if 10% of passengers used the train that'd only be five hundred departing passengers per day - not worth a dedicated branch (when passenger numbers on the Harrogate line require more services to Harrogate).

LBA exists mainly for "low cost" flights to the usual resorts and a few city breaks - if it was a proper/ big airport then there wouldn't be the requirement for Leeds to have a half hourly service to Manchester Airport.

Instead, a station on the existing line makes a lot of sense as it'll be used by commuters from the leafier places north of Leeds that don't currently have access to the train (Otley and whatnot), so serves two markets. Quite clever, I reckon. A dedicated Airport branch for such a lightly used Airport would be a waste. If you can serve it with a station on the Harrogate line then fair enough though.

LBA is steadily expanding, as are Jet2 as demand grows. The roads around LBA struggle even when it's not peak time traffic. So solutions need to be explored. In the area around where the proposed station there are plans to build many more homes, not to mention the people already in that area. With LBA now starting consultations on building a new arrivals hall, looking at improving taxiways and have already changed the airspace movements around the airport to increase capacity, the demand continues to grow as does the traffic. So even if only 10% would initially use a shuttle bus link, that's 10% of the airport traffic off the roads.

 

[bluenoxid]

why is the mere fact that you have to catch a bus to the airport that a waste of money? On that metric we best shut Luton Airport Parkway. Perhaps we ought to have a look at Birmingham international also. Teesside Airport will also have to go. Oh hang on.................

You have misinterpreted the post. The user was stating that building a brand new station with a bus link is pointless considering that Horsforth railway station is so close by and could be served by a bus link. So the user was stating either upgrade Horsforth or build a link to the airport terminal rather than what I and the user consider a pointless halfway house.

As it stands Horsforth station has limited parking, which ( I guess) spills over into the surrounding streets. I can't see how a bus shuttle to Horsforth would work given the congested streets the shuttle would have to travel over and the lack of space to have a proper drop off / pick up area.

The proposed station solves these two problems by (i) providing a much larger car park for commuters to the North of Leeds wishing to railhead and (ii) providing a dedicated link road that presumably will only be accessed by the bus, thus making the bus shuttle concept a far more reliable and attractive proposition with a 36-52 minute journey on the 757 turning into a 20+ minute journey by train + shuttle bus.

The other point not yet raised is that a large employment zone is planned next to LBA to counteract the loss of employers in NW Leeds over the past few decades. I agree that describing the station as an Airport Parkway is a bit of marketing spin. Nevertheless, Commuters into Leeds + Commuters to employment hub + airport passengers and staff = significant demand for station.

I see where you are coming from and your points to me are the pros for this work.

With regards to local roads, it depends if they spend money building a link road into Horsforth station from the north.

The link road for the new station will also be used by cars accessing the station for the car park and it appears that the bus will have to use general traffic roads to access the airport.

I have concerns that the enterprise zone won’t be that popular due to the dire road connections. The nearest motorway is not that close.

Personally from my point of view, it comes down to two points of view.

Do you spend approaching £30m on a two platform station, access, car park and short link road.

Or do you spend a similar amount on upgrading Horsforth railway station, car park and longer link road.

 

[MarkyT]

Do you spend approaching £30m on a two platform station, access, car park and short link road.
Or do you spend a similar amount on upgrading Horsforth railway station, car park and longer link road.

Horsforth is right on the edge of the built up area already. There are fields just beyond the north end of the station. A longer link road might approach Horsforth station from the north and the bus turnback and rail parking situated at that end, connected solely to the new link road and not linked through to existing local roads in Horsforth. That would avoid interaction between the airport/parkway traffic and local traffic and buses on existing roads. The station, car park, bus terminal and local road network would be linked up by improved pedestrian/cycle routes which might connect up withyfurther active travel pathways going north. I have placed a childish scrawl illustrating the concept here:
https://www.railforums.co.uk/thread...-from-the-harrogate-line.169772/#post-3655953