Left: Design rendering of Luton Airport’s proposed light rail link
Passenger numbers at London Luton Airport (LLA) passed 1.5 million in July 2016, a 15.4% increase over the same month the previous year.
The latest passenger numbers highlight the growing demand for air travel across the Southeast of England, with London Luton Airport planning to increase capacity by 50%, to 18 million passengers per year, by 2020. Construction for the project is well underway, with a new dual carriageway access road and multi-story car park due to open this autumn.
Looking further ahead, plans have also been confirmed for a £200m (US$263m) light rail link to replace the current shuttle bus between Luton Airport Parkway train station and the airport terminal. Once complete, the journey from London St Pancras to the terminal door will take less than 30 minutes, bringing LLA closer to Central London than both London Gatwick and Stansted airports.
Nick Barton, CEO of LLA, said, “The summer holiday period is now in full swing. These latest figures show that more people are choosing to travel through LLA than ever before.
“This summer, we are employing additional staff, offering two hours free parking in the long-term car park, extending our free wi-fi service, and have installed device charging points.”
