Although the Government has taken a policy decision in favour of a third runway, this does not mean that construction will start straight away. In fact, we are only at the very first stage in a long planning process. We know that lots of people are concerned about the third runway, so we will provide plenty of opportunities for public consultation. 

What happens next?
We need to undertake detailed work exploring all the different ways that a third runway could be developed. This includes issues like road layout, how the new terminal might look, public transport access to the airport etc. Once we have developed some initial options, we will consult with local people and key stakeholders to ask for their opinions on how we should proceed. It is too early to provide any idea of the timescales involved but due to the complexity of the project, the initial optioneering work is likely to take some time.

Who will decide whether a third runway goes ahead?
A new Planning Act came into force in 2008 which means that the planning process for Heathrow’s expansion is likely to follow a different process to previous developments such as that which approved Terminal 5.

Under the new Act, a new planning body has been set up - the Infrastructure Planning Commission (IPC). The IPC is designed to deal with nationally significant infrastructure projects involving energy, transport, water and waste. The Government has stated that Heathrow expansion is a ‘nationally significant infrastructure project’.

Click on the link below to view a chart showing the planning process we will follow now that we have the Government's decision on a third runway.

Planning process chart (25KB PDF)