British Airways chief executive Sean Doyle has said Heathrow Airport’s long-awaited expansion should go ahead without moving the M25 motorway.
The government is currently weighing up two rival plans for the airport’s third runway — one from Heathrow’s owners and another from the Arora Group, led by hotel entrepreneur Surinder Arora.
Heathrow’s proposal involves constructing a full-length 3,500m (2.2-mile) “North-Western Runway”, which would require diverting the M25 through new tunnels and bridges built 130m to the west of the existing motorway. Traffic would be switched to the new route during overnight closures.
Arora Group’s rival “Heathrow West” scheme features a shorter 2,800m runway that would not affect the M25, with an estimated cost of £25bn — roughly half of Heathrow’s £49bn plan. However, it would need additional infrastructure to support operations.
Speaking at the Airlines 2025 conference in Westminster on Monday, Mr Doyle said: “If you can avoid moving the M25, you should avoid moving the M25. I can’t argue against the logic of that. I think we should look at ways of potentially building a shorter runway.”
The government has asked both developers to provide more information about the financial, social and environmental impacts of their proposals. A decision on which plan will proceed is expected by the end of the month.
Heathrow’s expansion plans — including a new road tunnel under the airport and widening of the M25 between junctions 14 and 15 — were revived this year after being paused in 2020.
