Better infrastructure needed to support airport, says chairman

EVERYONE wants to have a regional airport in their area but nobody is willing to pay for such facilities, according to the chairman of Waterford Regional Airport.

Nicholas Fewer said a university must be established in the south east, roads must be improved, particularly the route to Dublin, and other ‘quality-of-life’ issues must be resolved if the airport is to continue to thrive.

The government must also throw the “almost sustainable” airport a lifeline. While Kerry airport gets €1.7 million in State aid annually, followed by Galway at €1.23m, Waterford receives only €410,000.

Mr Fewer also urged the five counties which make up the south east to put aside their petty rivalries and pull together for the benefit of the airport.

“An airport is not a business that you provide in a region because you think it is a good idea and you have an unlimited budget,” he said.

An airport will only work on a regional basis if there is critical mass, with ideally, a sufficiently large population concentration within a one-hour drive of the airport.

There must also be a demand created for travel resulting from foreign investment in the area.

“The hinterland served by a regional airport must also have a sufficient number of people with better than average disposable income in order to support sun holiday flights out of the country,” Mr Fewer said.

Mr Fewer said Waterford, if it is to take its role seriously as the gateway to the south east region, is faced with the prospect of successfully energising six local authorities, which have no great background or tradition of working together to promote regional objectives.

“Our east-west road network is of a particularly high standard,” Mr Fewer said. “However, our route to Dublin for the first 40 miles is akin to what you would find in a Third World country.