After years of talking and planning, construction is set to start on a $500 million development at Perth Airport.
A NEW domestic terminal and major upgrades to the international arrivals area are the major features of Perth Airport’s redevelopment, to begin construction early next year.
The mining boom, falling airfares, a growing population and the state’s relative prosperity have pushed passenger numbers at the airport to an all-time high, up about 50 per cent between 2004 and 2010 to 10.4 million annually; and the airport has struggled to cope.
Perth Airport chief executive Brad Geatches says the corporation is aiming to ensure all development in the next few years would not become redundant within a decade or so.
He acknowledges the airport has struggled to keep up with demand after being caught out by the growth within the industry.
“The rate of growth of air services in Western Australia has exceeded everyone’s expectations,” Mr Geatches told Business Class.
“When you’re delivering complex services with pretty long lead-in times, it becomes complicated, and it’s fair to say we have been, in the past couple of years, in catch-up mode. But we have caught up.”
In October, Perth Airport was rated the worst of the capital cities airports by Engineers Australia in its annual infrastructure report card.
Mr Geatches defended the airport’s C+ rating, which put it behind the national B average, saying that the airport was still classed as adequate and the redevelopments will make considerable progress.
“It is in need of work and yes we are going to do the work,” he says.
“It’s fair to say that once we’ve invested $500 million in the next two years everyone will see a significant improvement.”
Mr Geatches also points to an Australian Competition and Consumer Commission report, which in March this year ranked Perth Airport as the nation’s third best behind Brisbane and Adelaide in terms of customer satisfaction.
Over the next 18 months, a large new domestic terminal will be built next to the existing international terminal, catering to both domestic and regional services.
“Those (regional) services are smaller aircraft and that segment has grown to such an extent, and its outlook is so strong, that it demands purpose-built facilities,” Mr Geatches says.
Fly-in, fly-out demand from the resources sector has been a major factor in that increasing demand, with Perth Airport estimating 75 per cent of regional flights are specifically servicing the mining or oil and gas industries.
Gradually, all carriers will be moved over to the new terminal, with only Qantas remaining at the existing domestic terminal.
Mr Geatches expects Qantas to remain there until it outgrows the facilities in eight to 10 years, after which it too will move over, creating a fully consolidated domestic-international terminal.
Beginning mid-2011, major redevelopment and expansion of the international terminal will commence, with the arrivals section attracting particular attention.
“An important area is the international arrivals, it’s about making a first impression, and we recognise that during the peak periods that the arrivals experience is not what it needs to be,” Mr Geatches says.
To speed up the arrivals process, baggage, immigration and customs areas will all increase in size, with a walk-through duty free store similar to the layout of major airports overseas.
Mr Geatches says that, together, these major projects will create an airport for WA that will better serve its clientele and be better placed to adapt to future demand.
The redevelopments follow about $40 million of development undertaken in recent years, including the recently opened link road between the international and domestic terminals, an expansion of long-term parking services, and the upgrades to the front of the domestic terminal.
Perth Airport will also be collaborating with the state government on Gateway WA, a move to fix the road congestion around the airport.
Under the Gateway WA project, due to begin construction in 2014, Leach Highway will become the main road into the airport precinct, with a three-storey interchange planned at the intersection of Horrie Miller Drive and Kewdale Road-Tonkin Highway.
