Delays on terminal work dire

IN 2015, Townsville Airport unveiled a plan for a major terminal redevelopment.

New lounges, more shops and eateries, extra check- in kiosks, an improved security screening area and extra seating were just some of the improvements that were set to improve the passenger experience during the inevitable airport waiting time.

The project was tipped to take 18 months and start before the end of the year.

Some two- and- a- half years since the plans first came to light, these much- feted improvements have not eventuated.

While some works are under way in the terminal, it’s far from the promises Townsville first heard from the airport.

It is truly baffling that a project that should have by now been complete has barely even begun and that it is all tied up in a stoush with our national carrier.

The $ 3 proposed passenger charge intended to recoup costs was presented as a fait accompli by the airport, but while Virgin signed the agreement in September 2015, Qantas still hasn’t reached a deal.

Any projected time frames for the project have gone completely out the window and it is now impossible to predict when these works could be finished.

The community is understandably a bit jaded about the whole thing.

If the airport is the gateway to our city, ours is badly in need of a spruce- up.

Retail and eating options are lacking, the check- in area can get quite congested with a lack of modern kiosks and woe betide the passenger who tries to get a seat on the upper concourse during peak flight times.

These things are no longer luxuries in this day and age, given how common air travel has become. People expect a certain level of service and Townsville just isn’t delivering.

If something isn’t done we will badly lag behind other regional airports across the country.

All of the negotiations that have gone on in the past have failed to yield a result.

Wouldn’t it be nice if Qantas and the Townsville Airport could deliver us an early Christmas present of finally sorting this out? It’s well beyond time this project became a reality.