The airport’s 23,000 on-site parking spaces provide business travellers and tourists with a range of services in a variety of surface and multi-storey car parks.

The airport, which says it is busier than ever, has reported revenues of £1.3bn and a pre-tax profit of £120m for the six months to end of June, compared with £23m a year earlier. The airport has reported a 1.3% rise in passengers to 35.5 million while its revenue rose 5.9% to £1.3bn.

The airport’s biggest earner is aeronautical income (charges to airlines), which generated £817m in the first six months. Also important is Heathrow’s retail revenue stream, which increased 4.2% to £247m (up from £237m). Public parking is the second biggest retail activity after duty and tax free shopping. In the first six months of this year, the airport’s car parks generated £52m, up from £48m in the same period last year.

“Car parking has continued to perform well in 2015,” says John Holland-Kaye, Heathrow’s chief executive officer, in his latest report. “The growth reflects increased car parking capacity, including the award-winning Terminal 2 multi-storey car park and the new 800-space Terminal 5 business car park which opened in February 2015. In addition, continued yield management and a broader product offering have contributed to the growth.”

Retail income at Heathrow:  1 Jan-30 June 2015

• Duty and tax-free- £60m
• Car parking - £52m
• Airside specialist shops - £47m
• Bureaux de change - £23m
• Catering - £21m
• Other retail income - £44m
• Gross retail income - £247m
• Retail expenditure - (£10m)
• Net retail income - £237m

The airport’s car parks are run under contract by APCOA Parking (UK), which monitors all activity from a control centre in the new Terminal 2 car park. This 1,500-space structure, which served the new Queen’s Terminal, was named Best New Car Park at the British Parking Awards 2015. The car park features a number of innovative technologies, including a Car Finder system that enables drivers to locate exactly where they have left their vehicle via dedicated video terminals. Ideas like the Car Finder system will be included in the new look multi-storey car park currently being fitted out at Terminal 4. 

While parking is a key revenue generator, Heathrow points out that it is investing in ways to reduce emissions from road traffic. Heathrow’s action plan for 2015 states that it will incentivise low-emission vehicles and provide more electric vehicle charging points. Holland-Kaye says: “Heathrow is working with partners to champion a joint approach to reducing emissions from road traffic in the Heathrow area and is working with Transport for London and other stakeholders to formulate a regional strategy for air quality.

“In June, Heathrow was awarded the Eco-Innovation Award by ACI Europe, recognising how much progress Heathrow has made in reducing emissions from the airport (down 16% over the past five years), and recognising features such as the world’s largest single site car-share scheme, the UK’s first publicly accessible hydrogen refuelling site, and an unrivalled public transport system connecting passengers to central London and surrounding communities."

A bigger Heathrow is now on the taxiway

Heathrow Airport is Britain’s biggest and busiest airport, and it is planning to become even bigger and busier. Heathrow emerged as the preferred option for a third runway in Sir Howard Davies’ report on providing a new runway serving London and the South East.

The Davies Commission hedged its bets, stating that Gatwick’s expansion plan as a “credible option”, but Heathrow was taken the report to be a ringing endorsement. 

John Holland-Kaye, Heathrow’s chief executive officer, says: “The Airports Commission’s unanimous and clear recommendation to support Heathrow was warmly welcomed by business leaders and politicians from across the country and closed the debate on where a new runway should be built. Our focus now is on working closely with government to deliver the benefits of expansion for all of the UK as quickly as possible.”

Holland-Kaye says the expansion of the airport would deliver £211bn to the UK economy and 180,000 new jobs. While he said “spades could be in the ground” by 2019, there are still political hurdles to clear before work on the new runway can begin.

The Davies Commission’s preference for Heathrow’s North West runway plan was controversial, as there is considerable opposition to the idea of expanding the airport from not only rival airport Gatwick but many people living in its flightpath, environmentalists and politicians, including several significant Conservative MPs, most notably London Mayor and member for Uxbridge Boris Johnson. However, Prime Minister David Cameron, a former sceptic on expansion of Heathrow, seems to moving closer to accepting the Davies Commission’s recommendation. A Cabinet committee looking at the issue, to be chaired by Cameron, does not contain ministers who are known critics of expanding Heathrow.

Aside from David Cameron, other attendees include chancellor George Osborne, business secretary Sajid Javid, transport secretary Patrick McLoughlin, environment secretary Liz Truss, Climate change secretary Amber Rudd and Chief Whip Mark Harper. However, Home Secretary Theresa May, MP for Maidenhead, and Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond, MP for Runnymede – constituencies under the flight path – have not been invited to attend.

The committee’s terms reference are to “consider matters relating to airport capacity in the south east of England in the light of the Airports Commission's report”. The Chancellor said a final decision on whether to expand Heathrow or build a new runway at Gatwick will be made by the end of the year. 

    Source : Transport Extra