Heathrow Airtrack - Rise and Fall

Rise and Fall

The principle of a rail connection to Heathrow from the south had been the subject of considerable discussion and study for 50 years. Since 1960, there have been more than 10 studies or proposals that considered how to improve surface access to Heathrow by means of an additional fixed rail link and in 1984 studies confirmed the viability of the link.

Following a period of public consultation in 1998, BAA submitted plans on 24 July 2009 to the Secretary of State for Transport seeking authorisation under the Transport and Works Act to acquire the necessary land and begin constructing the rail link.

Work had been forecast to begin in 2011, with rail services operating by 2015. However, on 30 July 2010 the Department of Transport wrote to all parties involved in the public inquiry, informing them that this had been delayed indefinitely. The reason cited was that "the Government has confirmed that its most urgent priority is to tackle the UK's budget deficit and that there will be a spending review in the Autumn. The review may have implications for the proposed funding of the Airtrack Scheme and until the position becomes clearer, we do not consider it appropriate to take matters forward..."

In the event, Airtrack was not mentioned in the spending review and, as a result, in November 2010 BAA announced that the 'public enquiry remains deferred'.

On 23 December 2010, two radio stations, County Sound and Eagle, ran news stories on the 'end of the line' for Airtrack. However, it is not clear whether these stories were based on industry rumour of official sources. The same report had BAA insisting that its commitment to the project was still there and promising a new 'public consultation in the New Year'. However, on 26 January 2011 the DfT again wrote to objectors informing them the Transport and Works Act process remained suspended indefinitely, citing 'continuing uncertainty'.

Meanwhile, an alternative proposal has emerged, called the Windsor Link Railway. According to the promoting company, this has the advantage of potentially not requiring any public subsidy whilst providing more public benefit, not only connecting Heathrow to the north west (via the Thames Valley) but also to the south and linking the historic Great Western and Southern Railway regions. The proposal has been welcomed by the Minister for Transport, Theresa Villiers.