Representation by Michael Gill Gibson
- Date submitted
- 28 October 2023
- Submitted by
- Members of the public/businesses
Gatwick Airport should not be allowed to bring their reserve runway into permanent use. Gatwick is already the busiest of the airports around London with the exception of Heathrow. Any expansion of services required to meet the demand for leisure and business travel, should be met by Stanstead and Luton airports and not Gatwick. It has been proved that Gatwick does not always have the human resources required to handle even the current level of aircraft movements. The main route to Gatwick via the M25/M23 is usually very busy and often has to be closed due to accidents. To avoid any such risk, travellers by car and taxi are more often using a more reliable route through Betchworth village to reach Gatwick. Our poorly maintained narrow lanes were never designed to carry this level of traffic. Deployment of the additional runway would substantially increase levels of pollution both in the air and on the ground. We already have to endure not only flights in and out from Gatwick, but also aircraft movements into and out of Heathrow, including stacking. I strongly object to any expansion at Gatwick airport.