The boss of Leeds Bradford International Airport says he wants to see a new rail link to the Yeadon site “within the next decade”.

Chief Executive John Parkin says there is now “real momentum” behind a proposal to build a spur on to the Harrogate to Leeds railway line to go to the airport and then on to Shipley and Bradford – which will mean links from Ilkley, Ben Rhydding, Burley, Menston and Guisely.

Plans for a rail link to the airport have been mooted for years, and only last week Mike Cartwright from the Bradford Chamber of Commerce said it could be a key factor in improving the economy of the area. Other business leaders have claimed companies are put off West Yorkshire by the lack of a link from the airport to the likes of Bradford, Leeds, Harrogate and York.

But now, Mr Parkin believes the scheme is finally possible and would cost “not billions, but tens of millions”.

“There is real momentum behind that project,” he said.

Read more on this story in this week's Gazette & Observer.