Londoners not convinced by Heathrow plan
CLOSE-TO-CAPACITY Heathrow is getting ready for its busiest week of the year so far, with more than 1.6m passengers expected to fly in and out of the airport during Easter week.
This Friday will see the biggest number of holidaymakers pass through Heathrow, with 220,000 people arriving or departing as the schools break up for Easter.
The rush to jet off for the bank holidays comes at an uncertain time for airports in the south east, with Londoners split almost exactly in half over whether the government should ramp up capacity in the region.
Forty-nine per cent of Londoners support an increase, according to a poll by Ipsos Mori, while 46 per cent are against such a move.
Among the supporters, just over three in ten believe a new runway at Heathrow is the best route to increasing London’s air capacity. Around a quarter would back a brand new airport in the Thames Estuary, as put forward by Mayor Boris Johnson.
“Even among those who agree that we need more capacity, there is no overwhelming favourite option. Londoners are yet to be convinced either way,” said Ipsos Mori’s deputy head of research Tom Mludzinski.