Spain wants to build a terminal at Gibraltar Airport in a joint hub with over 120,000 people.

SPAIN has explored plans to build an airport passenger terminal in Gibraltar as part ambitious proposals to create cross-border transport hubs serving over 120,000 residents.

The radical scheme would see La Línea, the Spanish border town, construct terminal facilities on Spanish soil to complement Gibraltar’s existing airport infrastructure following the post-Brexit agreement that will effectively eliminate the physical frontier.

According to an official memorandum prepared by La Linea’s city hall in this month, Gibraltar’s border control has been eliminated, allowing the airport to serve both countries as one integrated airport.

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The proposed Spanish terminal would enable commercial air routes to operate directly to Spanish territory, dramatically improving connectivity for the region whilst potentially boosting La Línea’s economy through airport-related activities and services.

This could have a profound impact on the airport, as the Spanish terminal is likely to be the most popular gateway for passengers who are travelling to Spain and not staying in Gibraltar.

Officials in La Línea are now reviewing their urban development plans to assess whether land should be reserved for the hypothetical terminal, which would feature shared border controls and enhanced passenger facilities.

The airport expansion is part of a broader vision to transform La Línea into what planners describe as a a ‘strategic transport and commercial hub’, including itself with Gibraltar in a cross-border urban area that would function as a single conurbation despite spanning two jurisdictions.

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Gibraltar’s border control will shift from the land border to the airport and port under the new arrangements following Brexit. 

This has created what officials describe as the need for ‘coordinated planning’ between the two territories.

The memo suggests that the expanded airport would be a good anchor for a proposed Cross-Border Innovation Park, which features technology clusters aimed at attracting international companies to the region.

However, the ambitious infrastructure plans face significant challenges. 

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Traffic congestion on the existing A-7 is already bad, and an airport expansion will likely make it worse if there are no major improvements to transport.

Planners are calling for La Linea, a new train service from Nerja to Algeciras Costa del Sol to have a stop. Express bus services need to coordinate with flight schedules in order to accommodate the increased passenger and freight traffic.

The proposals also include a new funding mechanism that would allow La Línea to receive direct income from shared airport operations with Gibraltar, helping finance municipal services in the Spanish town.

The airport project is the largest infrastructure project that has emerged from the post Brexit arrangements. These have fundamentally changed the relationship between Gibraltar, Spain and Gibraltar.

The Olive Press is a great source for Andalucia News.

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