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Tourism businesses in the South West of WA have renewed calls for the state government to fund the expansion of the Busselton Margaret River Airport, with the facility expected to see nearly 100,000 passengers this year.
Key points:
- The Busselton Margaret River Airport passenger numbers have exceeded expectations
- Tourism groups say the terminal requires immediate upgrades to cater for the numbers
- The state government will not commit funding until after the three years trial of the Melbourne flights
The airport has been marketed as the gateway into the Margaret River wine region with three direct flights through Jetstar from Melbourne since April 2022.
The airport also services fly-in fly-out workers, which has contributed to the passenger increase from 25,000 pre-pandemic to 95,000 this year.
South West tourism groups say the terminal is struggling with the excess passengers, delaying processing time and frustrating tourists coming to the region.
Airport 'holding region back'
One wine tour operator said the limited capacity of the terminal was holding back the region from accepting more flight paths around the nation and overseas.
"We know there's talk about flights coming from Sydney and Brisbane and probably later on, Singapore," Stephen Hayman said.
"We need to get this in place so we can give our customers or people arriving to the region a better experience."
Mr Hayman said passengers had complained to him of delays at the terminal.
"They're frustrated … some say they won't return through that airport again."
Costs blow out for local council
In 2020, $10 million in state government funding was on the table for the expansion, but the government said it would not push forward with the plans until after the three-year trial of the Melbourne flights.
Mr Hayman said the costs to expand would be "twice as high" now than they were a couple of years ago.
A Jetstar spokesperson said it was really pleased with the popularity of the route.
"We continue to work closely with stakeholders, including the WA government and the City of Busselton, to ensure its ongoing success," they said.
The City of Busselton's monthly financial report stated a "higher-than-expected" passenger numbers meant operational costs of the airport had blown out by more than 500 per cent.
The city is currently spending $260,000 on the upgrade to the departure lounges to alleviate delays.
However, tourism groups say it's only a short-term solution.
A state government spokesperson said it still had a keen interest in the "ongoing success" of the airport.
"Early numbers show there has been high demand for flights between Melbourne and Busselton during the trial period," the spokesperson said.
"We will continue to monitor the results of this trial and assess whether further infrastructure upgrades are required."
'Not talking about a Taj Mahal-style terminal'
Sharna Kearney runs the Margaret River Busselton Tourism Association and said the issue would continue to rear its head.
"We're not talking about passengers having a wonderful Taj Mahal-style terminal to depart and arrive through," Ms Kearney said.
"What we're looking for is something that can efficiently and smoothly process these passengers."
She urged the City of Busselton and the state government to get things underway sooner rather than later.
"It's going to take a number of years to expand or construct new facilities," she said.
"There are calls from airlines to start considering this route, but we're not in a position to potentially accept them."