Taxi Driver Online

Airport transport report ‘confusing and disgraceful’



A report claiming nearly 40 per cent of passengers are using public transport to get to Leeds Bradford Airport has been described as “confusing” and “disgraceful”.

The Leeds City Council document said about 37 per cent of travellers got to the airport using public transport during 2010.

But the figure controversially includes people travelling by taxi, private minibus and some by shuttle bus to the terminal from car parks near to the airport. In fact, only 6.4 per cent of passengers got to the airport terminal by public bus service.

The report, in the council’s surface access strategy, said more than 2.7m people used the airport last year.

Councillor Ryk Downes (Lib Dem, Otley & Yeadon) admitted some of the statistics in report were less than helpful.

“The report can be confusing,” he said. “The majority of people believe public transport to be by bus or train, not by taxi or shuttle bus.”

Coun Downes, who said he uses the “reliable” bus service to and from the airport, said some people living in Yeadon had often seen people parking cars in residential areas, before getting taxis to the airport.

And he conceded the only realistic way to increase passengers using public transport to and from the airport would be with the introduction of a rail link, which he believes could be “ten or 20” years away.

“The report, perhaps, isn’t helpful in encouraging more people into public transport use,” he said. “The airport does have to help fund bus routes, but it’s not ideal when you’ve got an international airport without a rail link.”

Coun Brian Cleasby, (Lib Dem, Horsforth) said: “Almost one in ten people arriving in a car is being discounted because they had the sense to hop on a shuttle bus to take them to a door. So in the eyes of the report they arrive by bus.

“Passengers are being put into the wrong category, it is disgraceful.”

A spokeswoman for the council said the airport car park service bus is not included as public transport.

“The figures were supposed to be transparent, not to mislead,” she said.

“The Department of Transport set us a target of trying to get 40 per cent of passengers to travel to the airport by public transport.

“We don’t include the car park service bus as public transport though, so we are currently achieving 30.6 per cent.”

http://www.ilkleygazette.co.uk/news/news_local/

_________________
Think of how stupid the average person is, and realize half of them are stupider than that.
George Carlin