A major expansion planned for Glasgow International Airport will provide a welcome economic boost for the immediate area.
The airport, which along with most regional airports has seen traffic numbers surge in recent years, is about to embark on a 10-year, £290m expansion which could include a city-centre rail link.
Airport operator BAA unveiled its 25-year masterplan for the airport in October. It builds on the framework in the government’s 2003 aviation white paper on coping with future increases in demand.
Passengers using Glasgow International Airport are expected to number 12m-15m by 2015, rising to a potential peak of 24m by 2030. This compares with an anticipated 8.8m passengers this year.
A dedicated rail link to Glasgow Central Station, offering services every 15 minutes, has been proposed to cater for this increased traffic. The scheme is due to be subject to a second reading in the Scottish Parliament this year, with completion by the end of 2010. Some observers see this as a tight schedule because compulsory purchase orders and funding issues need to be sorted out.
In addition to alleviating the problem of heavier traffic loads, it is hoped that the link will give a boost to the local economy, Paisley in particular. The only intermediate stop on the proposed line is Paisley Gilmour Street.
Economic development consultant Roger Tym & Partners estimates that the rail link could support the development of 135,000 sq ft of office accommodation, bringing 675-700 jobs to Paisley town centre.
“There is not much of a market for office accommodation in the town centre at the moment, but a rail link would be a catalyst,” says David Keddie, partner at RTP. Keddie says that the rail link would make Paisley Gilmour Street one of Scotland’s best-served stations, with the airport link and the Ayrshire to Glasgow line providing city-centre services every 10 minutes. The rail link could also bring more shoppers in to Paisley town centre.
Glasgow airport is Scotland’s main centre for belly-freight cargo carried in passenger aircraft, with Prestwick the main base for pure freight aircraft and Edinburgh for express packages. Glasgow has attracted key direct intercontinental services, including Dubai, Islamabad and Lahore in Asia, and Toronto, Calgary, Chicago, Boston, Vancouver and New York in North America.
Industrial opportunities
Julie Ketley, Glasgow-based director at Colliers CRE, says that Glasgow airport attracts industrial rents of £6 per sq ft, against £5-£5.50 per sq ft in comparable areas. But she adds that much of the stock around the airport consists of terraces, which is not a problem for occupiers at either end, but which does create issues of access, quality of space and light for those in the middle.
BAA expects freight volumes at Glasgow to increase from 9,600 tonnes to 11,250 tonnes a year between 2005 and 2015, and to 13,000 tonnes by 2030. The airport says that new cargo facilities will only be delivered in response to specific requests, but adds that some cargo handlers have indicated they need additional make-up space for pallets.
Work on a £25m extension to the main terminal starts in spring 2007, aimed at increasing terminal capacity, streamlining security and adding retail opportunities. Detailed plans, including the amount of retail space, should be decided by the
end of the year. Airport designers will have to consider the new rules restricting what passengers can take through security.
Tom Johnston, head of retail at Glasgow’s Colliers CRE, says that retail needs to be improved, and adding space will help. “The retail offer is very poor almost an afterthought,” he says. “To attract shoppers for longer you need a wider range of offerings.”
