Noise impacts of airport expansion

Aviation - Government's projected growth
2000 2030

These maps indicate more flights, runways, and airports by 2030

These maps illustrate current and possible future levels of air traffic, flight paths, and holding stacks (used to regulate the flow of planes landing) - the map on the left shows the situation in 2000; the one on the right the possible effect by 2030 if the Government's forecasts were to be allowed to happen. These maps summarise the results of detailed research commissioned by CPRE, and are part of our leaflet, Flying to Distraction

One of the biggest threats posed by the expansion of air travel is its noise impact on communities and the countryside. If the Government's forecasts for aviation growth turn out to be correct, aviation is likely to intrude into previously tranquil areas and make hundreds of thousands of people's lives a misery. The consultants calculate this could be the case for over 606,300 people.

More flights, a new flight path and more people affected by noise
We asked respected consultants TRL to examine the Government's forecasts and what they would mean for future patterns of air travel. They found that

• 606,300 people could be seriously bothered or subject to unacceptable levels of noise in 2030 - more than double the number of people affected today and equivalent to twice the population of Coventry
• an area the size of Cheshire - 2,090km2 - would be seriously affected by aviation noise by 2030, much of it tranquil countryside
• three new holding 'stacks' over rural areas would be required, probably near Chelmsford, Ashford, and in the Midlands
• there will be a significant increase in the frequency of flights, with some flight paths seeing more than 60 planes an hour
• an entirely new flight path along the east coast of England may be needed, which could include flying over the North Yorkshire Moors National Park