Dublin airport is working on the possibility of submitting a second interim infrastructure planning application that “would not involve building anything new” to help lift the passenger cap at Dublin airport.
The decision on whether the application will be submitted to Fingal County Council will depend on the outcome of a ruling expected from An Bord Pleanála this summer, relating to the number of night-time flights allowed at Dublin Airport. If it goes ahead it wil be submitted din October.
Mr Jacobs said: “when you’re not building anything, and there’s no congestion on the roads, which was the reason for the 32m cap, I think it’s a much simpler application.”
Addressing the car park capacity problems, Mr Jacobs said Daa is in talks with the owner of Quickpark to see if an agreement can be reached to reopen it for the summer period, while an alternative buyer is found. “We have had those conversations and I think in the next two weeks we will know one way or the other whether we are going to be able to operate it over the summer months.”
Kenny Jacobs said “we are a small, open, island economy and stalled growth at our national airport sends a negative signal about investment in Ireland. While we await the outcome of the planning process, daa is making every effort to restrict growth to stay within the cap and continues to work with the IAA as slots regulator and our airline customers with a view to managing capacity at Dublin Airport. We are working on the possibility of submitting a second interim infrastructure planning application, that would not involve building anything new and therefore could be decided by the authorities more quickly. That will be just allowing us to operate to 35-36m without building anything because the airport can take it and because the traffic congestion, which was the reason behind the 2006 condition, no longer exists, 35pc of passengers now come to Dublin Airport on the bus compared to 20pc in 2019 and 5pc in 2006 when the planning application was approved.”
