Proposals to demolish Luton Airport and build four run ways in its place have been described  as ‘crazy’ by campaigners against the expansion of Luton Airport.
 

The Policy Exchange, a charity think tank, has issued a report that suggests Luton Airport should be demolished and in its place install a four-runway airport hub in the gap between Luton and Harpenden.
 

HALE, Hertfordshire against Luton expansion, has said the plans would bring noise pollution and traffic congestion to St Albans and Harpenden.
 

Andrew Lambourne, one of the founders behind HALE, said: “These proposals seem like desperate measures and would have a detrimental affect on communities in St Albans and Harpenden.
 

“There would be problems of noise and traffic, because more travelers would come in to the area.
 

“There is also a problem with the geography of the plans because the area is hilly which could be hazardous.
 

“Airports should be placed outside of communities.” 
 

These plans would see the closure of Heathrow and Stansted airport and would double the existing capacity to 130million passengers
 

Fiona McGlone, from Luton Aiport, confirmed they had not yet been consulted on the report proposals.
 

She said: “Policy Exchange have not approached or spoken to anyone from Luton Borough Council, London Luton Airport Ltd or London Luton Airport Operations Ltd. 
 

“Had they done so, we would have clearly stated that we do not believe that these plans are workable.
 

“The idea of positioning a new airport immediately to the south of Luton was previously raised in 2002 and subsequently found to be unrealistic, largely because of cost and the impact of the site's valley location.
 

“While we recognise the need for a UK hub airport to be located within the South-East of England, neither the topography of this site nor the current airport is suited to the requirement.
 

“We are pleased that the Policy Exchange report confirms Luton's strengths as a great location to do business, with excellent transport links.
 

“However the thinking behind the report has not been shared with the airport owner or operator, or the people of Luton and surrounding communities.”
 

Fiona added proposals to increase the capacity of the airport from 10 million to 18 million passengers per year, using the existing single runway were still in place.