'Airtrack will be endless misery' say councillors

Jul 27 2010 By Tammy Hughes, Surrey Herald

COUNCILLORS have warned that BAA's Airtrack rail link will bring nothing but misery to Spelthorne.

And members of the council's cabinet have expressed anger that the airport operator has "properly addressed" only 12 of the 79 points the authority has raised about the track.

The line is designed to link Heathrow Terminal 5 to the existing rail network to the south and west and the committee was responding to BAA's latest environmental impact report on the scheme.

Councillor Gerald Forsbrey, cabinet member for the environment, said: "Airtrack will have a significant effect on the area and the significance is all detrimental.

"As an authority we have to ensure that BAA do respond to all the issues we are raising. Some suggestions they have made to our objections are not satisfactory and only two have been properly addressed.

"This plan may or may not have an advantage to the south east as a whole, but it provides very, very little benefit to Spelthorne and it will cause major disruption to Staines and Staines Moor. We must continue with our objections until BAA comes up with responses."

BAA says that the service, to and from Heathrow via Staines from Guildford and Reading, will be used by an extra 21 passengers an hour from Staines.

"That is an awful lot of pain to go through for just an extra 21 passengers. It is ridiculous," Mr Forsbrey added. "The amount of down time at the level crossing in Thorpe Road will double. This will be devastating and cause absolute traffic chaos."

Barrier down time at the Vicarage Road and Station Road level crossings in Egham will also be badly hit.

BAA has revised estimates of down times from up to 48 minutes in every hour to a maximum of 38.

Councillor Vivienne Leighton also dismissed the scheme. "It is of little public benefit for Spelthorne or for Staines. The time it will take to build and the disruption will cause a lot of pain in the borough."