Heathrow says third runway could miss 2035 target by four years

Heathrow Airport has warned that its planned third runway may not open by the government’s target date of 2035 because of planning and regulatory hurdles. The airport said on Saturday that it hoped to secure planning permission by 2029 and open the runway “within a decade” of receiving approval. That timetable could imply an opening as late as 2039, about four years after the government’s target.

Heathrow said its core scenario had always been to open a new runway within a decade of securing planning permission. It also welcomed government efforts to simplify infrastructure planning and remove regulatory bottlenecks. The Department for Transport said the project’s timeline had “always been ambitious”.

It said it would continue working with Heathrow and other stakeholders to establish a framework under which a planning application could be considered. The department added that there was no live planning application for the runway. The proposed expansion is estimated to cost £33bn for the runway, within a wider £49bn airport modernisation programme.

It would involve demolishing hundreds of homes, diverting rivers and rerouting part of the M25 motorway through a tunnel beneath the runway. Heathrow says the project could raise annual flights from a current cap of 480,000 to 720,000. Supporters say it could create more than 100,000 jobs, while environmental campaigners, local residents and London Mayor Sadiq Khan oppose it over concerns about noise, air pollution and climate change.

The proposal still faces consultation and parliamentary processes. Government climate advisers have said it should proceed only if airlines pay for cleaner flying, a condition that could increase fares.