expansion

BRITISH Airways passengers will soon be able to stay connected mid-flight without having to pay a penny.

The airline has confirmed that they will be rolling out Starlink WiFi on all of their planes next year.

Not only will it be available in all cabins, but it will be completely free for all passengers.

The high speed network means passengers will be able to stream video onboard without any lag.

This also includes over remote regions and oceans, a common area where WiFi can often cut out.

BA boss Sean Doyle, British Airways said “Launching Starlink on both our long-haul and short-haul aircraft is game-changing for us and our customers, elevating their experience on board our flights by offering them seamless connectivity from gate-to-gate.

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“Especially on short-haul, this will really differentiate us from our competitors.”

The rollout is part of British Airways’ massive £7billion expansion.

This includes new airport lounges in both Dubai and Miami, with the Sun’s Travel Reporter Cyann Fielding trying out the latter.

Another 15 airport lounges are being upgraded, with 17 new short-haul aircrafts being introduced.

British Airways is also rolling out a new First Class Suite, with its biggest bed yet as well as 32inch screens.

A new app is also being rolled out next year.

Mr Doyle said at the time the app would be similar to an Amazon when it comes to easily being able to book flights.

He explained: “The website’s been around for 22 years. We were leaders in it many years ago and we’d improved it down through the years.

“But we’ve been falling behind and we need to catch up and leapfrog the rest.”

Other inflight upgrades include larger overhead lockers – where suitcases lie on their side rather than flat – and upgraded seats made from Scottish leather.

But British Airways isn’t the first airline to roll out Starlink onboard.

Back in March, United Airlines confirmed that they would be adding the free WiFi service to more than 40 aircraft.

And Qatar Airways confirmed that all passengers will be able to use free Starlink onboard – even FaceTiming a flight attendant to show how fast it will be

Starbucks has announced it will sell the majority stake in its Chinese business for $4bn to a Hong Kong-based private equity firm after years of losing market share to local competitors in China.

Starbucks announced the sale on Monday, which will see the firm Boyu Capital take a 60 percent stake in its Chinese retail operations through a joint venture.

Boyu Capital has offices in Shanghai, Beijing and Singapore, and its cofounders include Alvin Jiang, the grandson of former Chinese President Jiang Zemin, according to the Reuters news agency.

The US coffee giant will retain a 40 percent interest in its China operations while maintaining its ownership of the company’s brand and intellectual property, the company said.

The deal marks a “new chapter” in Starbucks’s 26-year-long history in China, the company said in a statement.

It will also give Starbucks a much-needed injection of funding and logistical support as it tries to expand its business deeper into China, according to Jason Yu, the Shanghai-based managing director of CTR Market Research.

Starbucks has 8,000 locations across China, but it aspires to open as many as 20,000 through its joint venture, the company said in a statement.

“Starbucks used to be a pioneer in coffee in China, where it was probably the first coffee chain in many cities, but this is no longer the case as the local competition already outpaced Starbucks in their expansion,” Yu told Al Jazeera.

Top competitors include homegrown Luckin Coffee, which has more than 26,000 locations worldwide, mostly in China.

Starbucks has historically been concentrated in first- and second-tier cities like Shanghai, Beijing and Shenzhen while Luckin has expanded into much smaller cities.

Luckin has also built a reputation around offering customers much cheaper drinks than Starbucks through its loyalty programme and in-app discounts.

A small Americano coffee at Starbucks costs 30 yuan ($4.21), but at Luckin, the same drink retails on average for about 10 yuan ($1.40), according to Yu.

Olivia Plotnick, founder of the Shanghai-based social marketing company Wai Social, told Al Jazeera that Starbucks has been unable to keep up with competitive pricing and consumer preferences.

“Between domestic players such as Luckin and later Cotti Coffee undercutting Starbucks on price, footprint and flavour fuelled by tech, wider beverage competition from the rise of milk tea brands and delivery platform wars, Starbucks have lost their once very competitive edge,” Plotnick said. By “delivery platform wars”, Plotnick referred to the cutthroat competition between apps for delivery services that drives down prices of goods like coffee.

Starbucks’s joint venture with Boyu Capital will offer the company more capital for investment but also help with logistics, infrastructure and managing commercial property as it opens more storefronts in regional cities, Yu said.

The company is following a familiar playbook used by other international brands in China, he said.

In 2016, after a major food safety scandal, KFC and Pizza Hut owner Yum Brands sold a stake in their China business to the China-based Primavera Capital and an affiliate of the e-commerce giant Alibaba Group, according to Reuters. The China business was later spun off into an independent entity.

In 2017, McDonald’s sold off a majority stake in its China, Hong Kong and Macau businesses to the Chinese state-backed conglomerate CITIC and the private equity group Carlyle Capital although it later bought back some of its business, according to CNBC.

After the deal with CITIC, McDonald’s doubled its outlets in China to 5,500 as of late 2023, CNBC said, and aims to open 10,000 restaurants by 2028.

The park, home to Peppa Pig World, is opening a new land in 2026 with thrill rides and a themed restaurant. Paulton’s Valgard zone is sure to be a hit when it welcomes in the public

Paultons Park, a theme park known for being the home of toddler favourite Peppa Pig World, is set to expand with a new land as part of a whopping £12 million development.

The new addition, Valgard – Realm of the Vikings, is designed for older children and teenagers and is scheduled to open in spring 2026. The Viking-themed land will feature two new adrenaline-pumping rides: the inverting rollercoaster Drakon, and Vild Swing, which will whirl riders 12 metres into the air in a first-of-its-kind ride in the UK.

A sneak peek video on the park’s official YouTube page offers thrill-seekers a taste of what to expect from Drakon, promising plenty of twists and turns. An existing ride, Cobra, is also set for a revamp and will be rebranded as Raven to align with the Viking theme.

The park also plans to add a themed restaurant and a playground for younger guests to Valgard. Further expansion of Valgard is planned for 2027, including a new water ride, although details are currently being kept confidential, according to the Express.

James Mancey, deputy managing director at Paultons Park, expressed his excitement about the project, stating: “We are thrilled to share our plans for our largest and boldest investment to date. As an independent, family-owned theme park, we’re incredibly proud of the investments we make to deliver the very best guest experience. We’ve opened two brand-new rides in the last two years and with the build of Valgard firmly underway, we’re excited to open a further three, bigger-and-better-than-ever-before rides, between now and summer 2027.

“Valgard promises an immersive, atmospheric, and action-packed experience for families and has been specifically designed to grow with our fans. The introduction of inversions and a vertical lift hill on Drakon certainly up the adrenaline levels at Paultons Park, but staying true to our roots, we haven’t forgotten about the little ones and there is something for all of the family in our new Viking village.”

The fresh Viking-themed area will join the park’s existing six themed worlds, including Tornado Springs with its American setting, and Lost Kingdom which focuses on dinosaurs.

Among the park’s most famous attractions is Peppa Pig World, inspired by the beloved children’s cartoon series, which Paultons Park has been crowned the UK’s top theme park, beating out competition from Alton Towers, Blackpool Pleasure Beach and Legoland Windsor. The Hampshire-based attraction scooped the prestigious Theme Park of the Year award at the UK Theme Park Awards 2025, as well as being named Best Theme Park for Families (Large), and Best Theme Park for Toddlers (Large).

Its Ghostly Manor ride was also voted Best New Attraction.

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Visitors have been quick to sing the park’s praises on Tripadvisor, with one reviewer, Ste H, describing Paultons Park as a “brilliant” place that is “spotlessly clean”. He added that the staff are “some of the friendliest people” he has ever encountered at such a venue, and that “[G]enuinely everyone we met made it perfectly clear they love working there, which is great to see.”

Another visitor, Lizzie L, shared her experience of visiting midweek, writing: “All the rides in Peppa Pig world were a walk on and the only time we queued was to meet Peppa. The theming is great and perfect for little ones.”

DISNEY fans could soon be able to get to Disney World much more easily thanks to a massive airport project.

A 10-year plan has been approved for Orlando International Airport (MCO), estimated to cost around $6billion (£4.5billion).

Orlando Airport is the busiest in Florida, and one of the busiest in the whole country.

And the project comes after passenger numbers have increased at the airport over the past few years, with it handling 57.2million passengers in 2024.

The expansion will focus on four main areas: customer experience, community, infrastructure and people.

By 2030, the airport hopes to add 8,000 car parking spaces, complete the construction of a new baggage handling system for Terminals A and B, complete two gate expansions and add more passenger walkways and travellators in Terminal C.

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Also by 2030, the airport would like to increase the number of small businesses working with them.

Then by 2035, the airport hopes to complete work on Terminal C.

The project will also see the terminals renamed by numbering them to make it easier for passengers.

As a part of the plans, the airport is working towards attaining a five star Skytrax rating too.

There will be one new cargo processing facility, an FAA-approved ‘vertiport’ for helicopters and restored stormwater structures, as well.

A video released showing the plans for the airport also implied that there will be facial recognition in the future, better flight information screens, smart restrooms, more shops and lounges and new play areas for families that will even have a theme park theme.

CEO of Greater Orlando Aviation Authority (GOAA), Lance Lyttle, said: “This vision focuses and unites everything we do around one core purpose: delivering an exceptional experience for everyone who passes through our airports.

“We’re creating spaces that are more welcoming, efficient, and enjoyable, from the parking areas to the gate, so that every step of the journey feels seamless.”

According to Disney Tourist Blog, the “MCO badly needs modernisation and expansion, and we’re pleased to see that happening with this massive $6billion (£4.5billion) investment.

“That should greatly improve the arrival and departure experience, making for a better first and last impression with Walt Disney World guests.”

The blog added that the airport is usually very busy, with 30 minute queues.

But thanks to the new expansion, a lot of the issues should hopefully go away.

The expansion also comes after a number of new attractions have opened in Orlando, with more in the pipeline.

For example, Epic Universe at Universal Orlando opened in May of this year with a new Harry Potter land.

The £7billion land also has a ‘How to Train Your Dragon – Isle of Berk’ land and a Super Nintendo World.

Walt Disney World is also investing $17billion (£12.7billion) over the next couple of decades, which includes a number of new rides.

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In other aviation news, a major UK airport is getting a £30million upgrade – but could mean your late flight is cancelled.

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Widespread regional anger over Israel’s war on Gaza, and beyond, will likely prove a major obstacle to any further signatories to the accords.

United States President Donald Trump has said he expects an expansion of the Abraham Accords soon and hopes Saudi Arabia will join the pact that normalised diplomatic relations between Israel and some Arab states, one week into the all-encompassing and fragile Gaza ceasefire between Israel and Hamas.

“I hope to see Saudi Arabia go in, and I hope to see others go in. I think when Saudi Arabia goes in, everybody goes in,” Trump said in an interview broadcast Friday on Fox Business Network.

The US president called the pact a “miracle” and “amazing” and hailed the United Arab Emirates’s signing of it.

The “Abraham Accords” secured agreements between Israel and the UAE, Bahrain, Morocco and Sudan.

“It’ll help bring long-lasting peace to the Middle East,” Trump claimed with his signature bombast.

But there are several factors at play since the original iteration of the accords, signed with fanfare at the White House during Trump’s first term as president in 2020.

Israel has carried out a two-year genocidal war against Palestinians in Gaza, escalated its harsh assault on the occupied West Bank, and beyond Palestine, bombed six countries in the region this year, including key Gulf Arab mediator Qatar, the huge diplomatic fallout from which effectively helped Trump force Israel into a ceasefire in Gaza.

An emergency summit of Arab and Muslim countries held in Doha in September, in the wake of the attack, staunchly declared its solidarity with Qatar and condemned Israel’s bombing of the Qatari capital.

The extraordinary joint session between the Arab League and the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) gathered nearly 60 member states. Leaders said the meeting marked a critical moment to deliver a united message following what they described as an unprecedented escalation by Israel.

Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s vision of a “Greater Israel”, has also been roundly condemned by Arab and Muslim countries, and involves hegemonic designs on Lebanese and Syrian territory, among others. Syrian President al-Sharaa, while welcoming Washington’s moves to end its international isolation, has not been warm to the idea of signing up to the Abraham Accords.

Hezbollah’s Secretary-General Naim Qassem appealed to Saudi Arabia in recent weeks to mend relations with the Lebanese armed group, aligned with Iran, and build a common front against Israel.

An August survey from the Washington Institute, a pro-Israel think tank in the US, found that 81 percent of Saudi respondents viewed the prospect of normalising relations with Israel negatively.

A Foreign Affairs and Arab Barometer poll from June came to similar findings: in Morocco, one of the Abraham Accords signatories, support for the deal fell from 31 percent in 2022 to 13 percent in the months after Israel’s war on Gaza began in October 2023.

Saudi Arabia has also repeatedly asserted its commitment to the Arab Peace Initiative, which conditions recognition of Israel on resolving the plight of Palestinians and establishing a Palestinian state.

Gatwick Airport has announced plans to bring its emergency runway into routine use as part of a 2.2bn expansion project, but who will pay for the works and when might the new runway open?

Gatwick Airport has had its £2.2billion plan green lit by the transport secretary, Heidi Alexander.

With the privately financed project, the West Sussex hub is aiming to massively increase its capacity. Gatwick will move its emergency runway slightly to the north, enabling it to be used for departures of narrow-bodied planes such as Airbus A320s and Boeing 737s.

– How many runways does Gatwick have?

It has one conventional runway, and one standby runway.

– What is the standby runway used for?

It is mostly used for aircraft to taxi to and from terminals, but is also used when the main runway is closed for emergencies or maintenance.

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– Why does Gatwick want to expand?

It is the UK’s second busiest airport and one of the busiest single-runway airports in the world. Spare slots at peak periods are scarce and the runway is heavily utilised, meaning disruption can have a severe knock-on effect.

– What must happen to the standby runway for it to be brought into routine use?

It must be moved 12 metres to the north – away from the main runway – to meet strict aviation safety rules.

– What else does the plan involve?

Remodelling and replacing existing taxiways, which connect runways to terminals, hangars and other facilities, extending both terminals, and installing new aircraft gates.

– How about transport?

Gatwick says it would pay for road connections to both terminals to be enhanced, creating fly-overs which separate local traffic from vehicles travelling to or from the airport. A £250 million upgrade of the airport’s railway station was completed in November 2023.

– What would the standby runway be used for?

Departures of narrow-bodied planes such as Airbus A320s and Boeing 737s.

– What impact would that have on Gatwick’s capacity for flights?

This would allow the airport to accommodate approximately 386,000 flights per year, a significant increase from the current 286,000. From the passenger’s perspective, that would increase the number of options when it comes to flying to established destinations, while also, presumably, upping the airports Gatwick is connected to.

– How about annual passenger numbers?

The number of passengers could potentially surge from around 45 million to a staggering 75 million by the late 2030s.

– How much will the project cost?

Gatwick has estimated the project to be priced at a hefty £2.2 billion.

– Who will pay for it?

The airport has assured that the project will be privately financed, promising to cover the costs without increasing charges to airlines.

– When could the new runway open?

A Government source hinted that flights could commence from the new full runway before 2029.

– Who owns Gatwick Airport?

The airport is owned by French firm Vinci and investment fund Global Infrastructure Partners.

– Does Heathrow’s third runway proposal affect Gatwick?

While the Government has shown support for Heathrow’s expansion plan, Gatwick remains undeterred in its ambition to enhance its own capacity.

– Does anyone oppose it?

Zack Polanski, the new Green Party leader, described ministers’ support of a second Gatwick runway as a “disaster”. “It ignores basic climate science and risks undermining efforts to tackle the climate crisis. Labour keeps wheeling out the same nonsense about growth, but at what cost? What this really means is more pollution, more noise for local communities, and no real economic benefit,” he said.

CAGNE, a residents campaign group that has long opposed the expansion of Gatwick, added: “As this is a new runway by the backdoor, offering little compensation for some and nothing for the majority of residents whose homes will be devalued as will areas of outstanding natural beauty and places of historic importance. As the only guarantee Gatwick has offered is that instead of one runway starting up at 6.30am until 11.30pm at night there will be two, so double the noise over rural areas.”

L.A. political leaders on Friday took what their own policy experts called a risky bet, agreeing to pour billions of dollars into the city’s aging Convention Center in the hope that it will breathe new life into a struggling downtown and the region’s economy.

In an 11-2 vote, the City Council approved a $2.6-billion expansion of the Los Angeles Convention Center, despite warnings from their own advisors that the project will draw taxpayer funds away from essential city services for decades.

The risks don’t stop there. If the Convention Center expansion experiences major construction delays, the project’s first phase may not be finished in time for the 2028 Olympic and Paralympic Games, when the facility is set to host judo, gymnastics and other competitions.

That, in turn, could leave the city vulnerable to financial penalties from the committee organizing the event, according to the city’s policy analysts.

Those warnings did not discourage Mayor Karen Bass and a majority of the council, who said Friday that the project will create thousands of jobs and boost tourism and business activity, making the city more competitive on the national stage.

“If we’re not here to believe in ourselves, who’s going to believe in us?” said Councilmember Adrin Nazarian, who represents part of the San Fernando Valley. “If we don’t invest in ourselves today, how are we going to be able to go and ask the major investors around the world to come in and invest in us?”

Councilmember Traci Park, who heads the council’s committee on tourism and trade, voiced “very serious concerns” about the city’s economic climate. Nevertheless, she too said the project is needed — in part because of the looming 2028 Games.

“This project will be transformative for downtown, and I truly believe the catalyst for future investment and redevelopment,” she said. “We need to bring our city back to life, and with world events looming, we don’t have time to wait.”

Foes of the project say it is too expensive for a city that, faced with a daunting budget crisis, eliminated 1,600 municipal jobs earlier this year, and has also slowed hiring at the Los Angeles Police Department.

On the eve of Friday’s vote, City Controller Kenneth Mejia came out against the project, saying on Instagram that it won’t generate positive income for the city budget until the late 2050s.

“Due to the city’s consistent budgetary and financial problems with no real solutions for long-term fiscal health … our office cannot recommend going forward with the current plan at this time,” he said.

The price tag for the Convention Center expansion has been a moving target over the last four weeks, increasing dramatically and then moving somewhat downward as the city’s budget analysts sought to assess the financial impact.

On Friday, City Administrative Officer Matt Szabo said the cost had been revised downward by nearly $100 million, which he largely attributed to lower borrowing costs, additional digital billboard revenue and a less expensive construction estimate from the Department of Water and Power.

The project is now expected to cost taxpayers an average of $89 million annually over 30 years, even with the additional parking fees, billboard income and increased tax revenue expected as part of the expansion, he said.

The financial hit will be the largest in the early years. From 2030 to 2046, the project is expected to pull at least $100 million annually away from the city’s general fund, which pays for police officers, firefighters, paramedics and other basic services, according to the newest figures.

Szabo, while addressing the council, called the decision on the expansion “the ultimate judgment call that only you can make.”

“Will it provide substantial economic benefits? Yes. Can we afford it? Yes, but not without future trade-offs,” he said. “We will be committing funds not just in 2030, but for 30 years after that to support this expansion.”

Earlier this week, opponents of the Convention Center expansion attempted to seek a much less expensive alternative focusing, in the short term, on repairs to the facility. The council declined to pursue that option, which was spearheaded by Councilmember Katy Yaroslavsky, the head of the council’s budget committee.

Yaroslavsky called the project unaffordable and unrealistic, saying it would lead to a reduction in city services.

“If you think city services are bad now — and I think all of us would agree that they suck — and you thought maybe one day we would have funding to restore service, I have bad news: It’s going to get worse,” she told her colleagues. “We aren’t going to be able to afford even the level of service we have right now.”

Yaroslavsky and Councilmember Nithya Raman cast the only opposing votes, saying the city is already under huge financial pressure, both at the local and the national levels. L.A. is already at risk of losing state and federal funding that support housing for the city’s neediest, Raman said.

“What I fear is that we’re going to have a beautiful new Convention Center surrounded by far more homelessness than we have today, which will drive away tourists, which will prevent people from coming here and holding their events here,” Raman said.

Friday’s vote was the culmination of a start-and-stop process that has played out at City Hall for more than a decade. Council members have repeatedly looked at upgrading the Convention Center, planning at one point for a new high-rise hotel attached to the facility.

Officials said the expansion project would add an estimated 325,000 square feet to the Convention Center, connecting the facility’s South Hall — whose curving green exterior faces the 10 and 110 Freeway interchange — with the West Hall, which is now an extremely faded blue.

To accomplish that goal, a new wing will be built directly over Pico Boulevard, a task that makes the project “extraordinarily complicated and extraordinarily costly,” Szabo said.

Southern California’s construction trade unions made clear that the Convention Center was their top priority, pressing council members at public meetings and behind the scenes to support it. The project is expected to create about 13,000 construction jobs, plus 2,150 permanent jobs.

Sydney Berrard, a retired member of Sheet Metal Workers’ Local Union No. 105, directed his testimony to Park — who had been undecided on the project for several weeks — telling her she needed to stand with her district’s construction workers.

“The only reason I was able to raise my family, buy a home and retire with security in your district is because of major projects like this,” he said.

Business and local community groups also backed the project, saying it will help a downtown that has struggled to recover since the height of the pandemic. By increasing the amount of contiguous meeting space, L.A. will be able to attract national events, accommodating tens of thousands of visitors at a single convention, they said.

“This is a model that can work,” said Nella McOsker, president and chief executive of the Central City Assn., a downtown-based business group.

Councilmember Bob Blumenfield, who missed Friday’s meeting because of an out-of-state trip planned several months ago, said he remains worried that the project won’t be finished in time for the 2028 Games.

“If that happens, not only is that a shame and embarrassing for the city of L.A. … but the financial risk of that is tremendous,” he said.

Earlier this week, Blumenfield joined Yaroslavsky and Councilmember Eunisses Hernandez in recommending the less expensive alternative plan. On Friday, Hernandez shifted her position to support the expansion.

Hernandez said she too is frustrated with the quality of city services, and will work on finding additional funding to pay for them.

“I know that we will find new money. And it will be OPM — other people’s money,” she said. “Because we can’t keep funding this on the backs of our constituents.”

Because of the tight timeline, construction is expected to begin almost right away, with crews starting demolition work next month.

Ernesto Medrano, executive secretary of the Los Angeles/Orange Counties Building and Construction Trades Council, said the project will be an investment in L.A.’s workers.

“Our members are ready to don their hard hats, their work boots, their tool belts and start moving dirt,” said Medrano, who began his career loading and unloading trucks at the Convention Center.

A $2.7-billion plan to expand the Los Angeles Convention Center is in jeopardy after a narrowly divided City Council committee opted on Tuesday to recommend a much smaller package of repairs instead.

Amid mounting concerns that the expansion could siphon money away from basic city services, the Budget and Finance Committee voted 3 to 2 to begin work on a less expensive package of upgrades that would be completed in time for the 2028 Olympic Games.

Councilmember Katy Yaroslavsky said the expansion proposal — which would add an estimated 325,000 square feet to the facility, spanning both sides of Pico Boulevard — is too risky for the city, both in terms of the tight construction timeline and the overall cost.

“The risks to the city’s finances are too great — and risks us having to cut our city workforce to offset the costs of this project for years to come,” said Yaroslavsky, who heads the committee.

Yaroslavsky proposed the less expensive alternative plan, drawing “yes” votes from Councilmembers Bob Blumenfield and Eunisses Hernandez. Councilmembers Tim McOsker and Heather Hutt voted against the proposal, saying it was a sudden and huge departure from the original expansion plan.

“I’m not comfortable voting on these recommendations today,” Hutt said. “The substantive changes have not been circulated to the committee members, staff and public — and the public hasn’t been able to give public comment on these last-minute changes that are very significant.”

Both proposals — the expansion and the less expensive package of repairs and upgrades — are set to go before the full City Council on Friday.

Council members have spent the last year trying to find a way to expand the size of the Convention Center, doubling the amount of contiguous meeting space, without also creating an excessive burden on an already stretched city budget. They have received increasingly dire warnings as Friday’s deadline for making a decision approaches.

Chief Legislative Analyst Sharon Tso, who advises the council on policy matters, told the committee Wednesday that she fears the project’s first phase won’t be done in time for the 2028 Games, when the Convention Center will host several competitions, including judo, wrestling and fencing.

Tso also warned that the ongoing cost of the project would make it much more difficult for the city to hire more firefighters, recruit more police officers and pay for such basic services as street repairs. Four months ago, the council approved a budget that closed a $1-billion financial gap, requiring cuts to city personnel.

“We just completed a budget process that was very brutal,” she said. “If you’re happy with the level of service that we have today, then this is the project for you.”

At City Hall, the Convention Center is widely viewed as a facility in need of serious repair, including new elevators and escalators, up-to-date restrooms and overall cosmetic upgrades. Expanding the Convention Center would allow the city to attract much larger national conferences, exhibitions and meetings.

The project, if approved, would connect the Convention Center’s South Hall — whose curving green exterior faces the 10 and 110 freeway interchange — with the West Hall, which is a faded blue.

The council has already pushed for several cost-cutting measures, including the removal of a plaza planned on Figueroa Street. Mayor Karen Bass and the council also have hoped to generate new revenue by installing digital billboards — two of them within view of drivers on the 10 and 110 freeways.

Even with the freeway-facing digital signs, the cost of expanding and operating the Convention Center could reach $160 million in 2031, according to City Administrative Officer Matt Szabo, a high-level budget analyst.

The cost to taxpayers is expected to average about $100 million per year over three decades, according to updated figures prepared by Szabo.

The Convention Center expansion has become a top priority for business groups, labor leaders and community organizations who say that downtown L.A. desperately needs an economic catalyst — one that will creates thousands of construction jobs and spark new business activity.

After the pandemic, office workers never fully returned to downtown, and dozens of stores and restaurants shut their doors. Homelessness and drug addiction also continue to plague portions of downtown.

“We want to see downtown recover. We want it to be a place Angelenos can be proud of, and this is the solution,” Cassy Horton, co-founder of the DTLA Residents Assn., said at the committee hearing.

Labor and business leaders told the council members that the city has a long track record of developing plans for upgrading the Convention Center, only to shelve them once it’s time for a decision.

“For more than a decade, we’ve studied this project, we’ve debated it, we’ve delayed it,” said Nella McOsker, president and chief executive of the Central City Assn., a downtown-based business group. “We’ve been deciding whether or not we are a city that can maintain and invest in this essential asset, and every time we make that delay, the cost increases.”

McOsker is the daughter of Councilmember Tim McOsker, who voted “no” on the repair proposal. An outspoken supporter of the expansion, he argued that the city took on a similar financial burden 30 years ago when it financed the construction of the Convention Center’s South Hall.

Yaroslavsky, in turn, said she was concerned not just about the project’s cost but the potential for it to pull resources away from the Department of Water and Power.

Dave Hanson, senior assistant general manager for the DWP’s power system, told the committee that deploying his workers at the Convention Center could result in delays on utility work elsewhere, including a San Fernando Valley light rail project and the installation of underground power lines in the fire-devastated Pacific Palisades.

“DWP may — we don’t know for sure yet, because they don’t know for sure yet — may have to sideline other critically important projects, including reconstructing the Palisades and all these other projects,” said Yaroslavsky, who represents part of the Westside.

Yaroslavsky’s alternative proposal calls for the city to regroup in four months on strategies for requesting new proposals for expanding the Convention Center, as well as other strategies to “maximize the site’s positive economic impacts.”

Hernandez, whose district includes part of the Eastside, said council members remain open to the idea of the Convention Center expansion as the project heads to a final vote.

“So it’s not that we’ve ruled out any options,” she said. “We’ve added more options to the conversation.”

For the last year, Los Angeles political leaders have searched for a way to upgrade the downtown Convention Center without also delivering cuts to core services.

The city’s budget team pushed for the facility to be emblazoned with digital billboards, which would produce tens of millions in ad revenue. A city-hired consultant came up with several cost-cutting measures, including the elimination of a public plaza originally planned as part of the expansion.

Despite those efforts, the project has only lost ground. On Tuesday, City Council members were informed the price tag has gone up yet again, reaching $2.7 billion — an increase of $483 million from six months ago.

Some at City Hall are growing nervous that the project’s first phase won’t be finished in time for the 2028 Olympic Games, jeopardizing the Convention Center’s status as one of the main venues. Beyond that, city officials have begun worrying publicly that Gov. Gavin Newsom might not support a state bill permitting the installation of two digital billboards that would face the busy 10 and 110 Freeway interchange.

Those two signs — hotly opposed by groups such as Scenic America — are expected to produce the vast majority of the project’s advertising income, according to the city’s budget team.

If state and federal support for the signs fails to materialize, the city’s general fund budget would have to provide an average of $111 million each year through 2058 to cover the cost of the Convention Center expansion, City Administrative Officer Matt Szabo said.

The earliest years would be the most expensive. In 2031, for example, an estimated $167 million in taxpayer funds would go toward the Convention Center’s debt and operations — even after the revenue from the project is factored in, Szabo told the council’s economic development committee on Tuesday.

“Since we last met in this room on this matter, the costs have increased dramatically,” Szabo said. “The serious [construction] schedule risks remain. And revenue that the project relies upon — will rely upon — is in jeopardy.”

For some on the council, the latest bad news is proving to be too much.

Councilmember Katy Yaroslavsky, who heads the council’s powerful budget committee, told The Times she believes an overhaul of the Convention Center is key to making downtown “stronger, more economically vibrant.” But with the city already struggling to pay for police officers, street repairs and other basic services, the current plan is “just too expensive,” she said.

“Without the signage revenue, the risk to the City’s budget is massive and unaffordable,” Yaroslavsky said in a statement.

Newsom spokesman Izzy Gardon declined to discuss the digital billboard bill, saying the governor’s office “does not typically comment on pending legislation.” State Assemblymember Mark González (D-Los Angeles), who represents part of downtown, said he is “engaging productively” with the Newsom administration on the bill.

“I’m confident we’ll find a path forward,” he said.

Council members must decide by Sept. 15 whether to move ahead with the project, Szabo said. Even some of the council’s downtown boosters sound nervous about their next step.

What “I hear some of my colleagues saying is, ‘Do we want a very beautiful Convention Center but a bankrupt city?’” said Councilmember Ysabel Jurado, who represents the vast majority of downtown.

Business groups have rallied around the expansion, saying it will finally allow L.A. to compete for large conventions, while also injecting new life into a downtown still reeling from the aftereffects of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The project has also amassed broad support from organized labor, especially the region’s construction trade unions, which say it would create thousands of jobs.

“With over 800 members out of work, we need a project like this,” said Zachary Solomon, business representative for the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local 11. “The cost of this project will only continue to increase, so we need this project now.”

Many of the groups backing the Convention Center expansion have played a role in electing council members. Still, if the council presses ahead with the project, it will do so in the face of major warning signs.

The city’s top policy analysts have cautioned that any major construction delay could cause organizers of the 2028 Olympic and Paralympic Games to pull the Convention Center, which is scheduled to host judo, wrestling, fencing and other competitions, off its list of venues.

“It would be really bad to pay such a premium on such a project and [have] it not be ready in time to host the Olympics,” said Chief Legislative Analyst Sharon Tso, who advises the council.

Stuart Marks, senior vice president of Plenary Americas, the development company spearheading the Convention Center project, told council members he is “highly confident” the work will be done on time, saying there is flexibility in the schedule — and major penalties if the developer fails to perform.

Marks, whose company has partnered with Anschutz Entertainment Group on the Convention Center, said the companies tasked with construction have an established history, having worked on projects such as Staples Center — now Crypto.com Arena — and the expanded Moscone Center in San Francisco.

“Their reputations are on the line. Our reputations are on the line. Nobody’s saying there’s no risks. But there are contingencies … mitigation strategies, security packages and contractual regimes that equally meet that risk,” he said.

The proposed timeline calls for APCLA, also known as AEG Plenary Conventions Los Angeles — the joint venture that would oversee the expansion — to start construction later this year, pause that work during the Games and then finish once the event is over.

Under the proposal, a new wing would connect the Convention Center’s landmark green South Hall with the blue West Hall.

Much of the increase in the construction price has been attributed to the city’s Department of Water and Power, which recently issued higher cost estimates for the relocation of utilities under Pico Boulevard and the installation of several miles of cable and conduit.

DWP officials have already warned that they lack the staffing to carry out the project and would need to hire outside labor. They also indicated that work on the Convention Center is likely to result in delays to other projects — including construction of a new rail line in San Fernando Valley — because staff would have to be diverted, according to Szabo’s memo.

Tso has echoed many of Szabo’s concerns, saying in a separate report that the project would have an “acute negative impact” on the general fund budget, which pays for police, paramedic responses and other basic services.

Times staff writer Laura J. Nelson contributed to this report.

Marton Mere Holiday Village in Blackpool is planning to site extra static caravans for holiday use, with park owners submitting a planning application to Blackpool Council

A holiday park in popular tourist destination Blackpool is seeking to position additional static caravans on the site.

The park’s owners, Bourne Leisure Ltd, have lodged a planning application with Blackpool Council for the placement of 20 extra caravans for holiday use through a proposed Certificate of Lawfulness.

Marton Mere Holiday Village, which operates under subsidiary group Haven Holidays, currently has 1474 permitted pitches, mainly filled with static caravans alongside a handful of touring pitches. By pursuing a Certificate of Lawfulness, the applicants contend there would be no need for planning permission to position the extra caravans on the park, situated off Mythop Road, Marton.

READ MORE: The best seaside towns in England and Wales of 2025 named – is yours on the list?

Planning consultants Laister, representing the applicants, stated in a planning document: “The addition of 20 caravans in the context of the overall permitted number of units across the park is so insignificant that it would not result in an onsite change to the definable character of the use of the land.

“The total number of permitted caravans across the site would rise to 1494, an increase of 1.4 per cent on the existing limits, which falls well within the percentage change parameters of a number of recent appeal decisions.

“As such, the stationing of the 20 caravans, as proposed in the submitted plans, would not result in a material change of use and would therefore be lawful, not requiring permission for the use of the land.

“Respectfully, we therefore request that the Council issue a CLOPUD (Certificate of Lawful proposed Use or Development) for the stationing of the additional 20 caravans and associated operational development.”

Earlier this month, Blackpool Pleasure Beach, one of the seaside town’s main attractions, announced that it would be allowing visitors to bring their furry friends with them on Sundays throughout August in a dog-friendly move that has proven controversial, reports Lancs Live.

Outlining the reasoning behind the ‘Dog’s Day Out’ initiative, Amanda Thompson OBE, CEO of Pleasure Beach Resort, stated: “We know that so many of our guests see their dogs as part of the family, and leaving them behind for the day can be a real worry. Dog-friendly Sundays mean guests no longer have to choose between a great day out and doing what’s best for their pet.

“We’ve always been a family park–family owned, for families–and with this latest step, we can truly say we’re a destination for all.”

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Sweden’s landmark Kiruna Church begins a two-day journey to a new home, inching down an Arctic road to save its wooden walls from ground subsidence and the expansion of the world’s largest underground iron ore mine.

Workers have jacked up the 600-tonne, 113-year-old church from its foundations and hefted it onto a specially built trailer – part of a 30-year project to relocate thousands of people and buildings from the city of Kiruna in the region of Lapland.

Mine operator LKAB has spent the past year widening the road for the journey, which will take the red-painted church – one of Sweden’s largest wooden structures, often voted its most beautiful – 5km (3 miles) down a winding route to a brand new Kiruna city centre.

The journey, which begins on Tuesday, will save the church but remove it from the site where it has stood for more than a century.

“The church is Kiruna’s soul in some way, and in some way it’s a safe place,” Lena Tjarnberg, the vicar of Kiruna, said. “For me, it’s like a day of joy, but I think people also feel sad because we have to leave this place.”

For many of the region’s Indigenous Sami community, which has herded reindeer there for thousands of years, the feelings are less mixed. The move is a reminder of much wider changes brought on by the expansion of mining.

“This area is traditional Sami land,” Lars-Marcus Kuhmunen, chair of the local Gabna Sami community, said. “This area was grazing land and also a land where the calves of the reindeer were born.”

If plans for another nearby mine go ahead after the move, that would cut the path from the reindeer’s summer and winter pastures, making herding “impossible” in the future, he said.

“Fifty years ago, my great-grandfather said the mine is going to eat up our way of life, our reindeer herding. And he was right,” he added.

The church is just one small part of the relocation project.

What next?

LKAB says about 3,000 homes and approximately 6,000 people need to move. A number of public and commercial buildings are being demolished, while some, like the church, are being moved in one piece.

Other buildings are being dismantled and rebuilt around the new city centre. Hundreds of new homes, shops, and a new city hall have also been constructed.

The shift should allow LKAB, which produces 80 percent of the iron ore mined in Europe, to continue to extend the operation of Kiruna for decades to come.

The state-owned firm has brought up about two billion tonnes of ore since the 1890s, mainly from the Kiruna mine. Mineral resources are estimated at another six billion tonnes in Kiruna and nearby Svappavaara and Malmberget.

LKAB is now planning the new mine next to the existing Kiruna site.

Rare earth elements

As well as iron ore, the proposed Per Geijer mine contains significant deposits of rare earth elements – a group of 17 metals critical to products ranging from lasers to iPhones, and green technology key to meeting Europe’s climate goals.

Europe – and much of the rest of the world – is currently almost completely dependent on China for the supply and processing of rare earths.

In March this year, the European Union designated Per Geijer as a strategic project, which could help to speed up the process of getting the new mine into production.

About 5km (3 miles) down the road, Kiruna’s new city centre will also be taking shape.

“The church is … a statement or a symbol for this city transformation,” mayor Mats Taaveniku said. “We are right now halfway there. We have 10 years left to move the rest of the city.”

Rob Manfred normally does what many fans consider an annoyingly effective job of keeping Major League Baseball’s strategic plans out of the public square.

So maybe the MLB commissioner was caught in an unguarded moment, staring down at a diamond from the ESPN “Sunday Night Baseball” booth in the cozy confines of Williamsport, Pa., and the Little League World Series.

Or maybe his comments were calculated. Either way, he spoke freely about how expanding from the current 30 teams could create an ideal chance to reset the way teams are aligned in divisions and leagues.

Manfred was asked on air for a window into the future. Expansion, realignment, both?

“The first two topics are related, in my mind,” he replied. “I think if we expand, it provides us with an opportunity to geographically realign. I think we could save a lot of wear and tear on our players in terms of travel. And I think our postseason format would be even more appealing for entities like ESPN, because you’d be playing out of the East and out of the West.”

Taking that thinking to an extreme would put the Dodgers and Angels in a division with, say, the San Diego Padres, San Francisco Giants, Las Vegas Athletics and Seattle Mariners.

Would that collection — let’s call it the Pacific Division — be part of the American or National League? Maybe neither. Instead, geographic realignment could result in Eastern and Western Conferences similar to the NBA.

Pushback from traditionalists might be vigorous. Call them leagues, call them conferences, geographical realignment would make for some strange bedfellows.

Former MLB player and current MLB Network analyst Cameron Maybin posted on X that making sure the divisions are balanced is more important than geography.

“Manfred’s realignment talk isn’t just about moving teams around, it tilts playoff balance,” Maybin said on X. “Some divisions get watered down others overloaded and rivalries that drive October story lines we love, vanish. Baseball needs competitive integrity not manufactured shakeups.”

Yet Manfred makes a persuasive argument that grouping teams by geographic location would have its benefits.

“That 10 o’clock time slot where we sometimes get lost in Anaheim would be two West Coast teams,” he said. “Then that 10 o’clock spot that’s a problem for us becomes an opportunity for our West Coast audience. I think the owners realize there is a demand for Major League Baseball in a lot of great cities, and we have an opportunity to do something good around that expansion process.”

Manfred said in February that he’d like expansion to be approved by 2029, his last year as commissioner. MLB hasn’t expanded since the Arizona Diamondbacks and Tampa Bay (Devil) Rays were added in 1998.

Expansion teams “won’t be playing by the time I’m done, but I would like the process along and [locations] selected,” Manfred said.

Several cities are courting MLB for a franchise, and the league is reported to be leaning toward Nashville and Salt Lake City as favorites. Portland, Orlando, San Antonio and Charlotte are other possibilities.

The Times’ Bill Shaikin has pointed out that geographical realignment would be tied to schedule reform that could help kindle rivalries and encourage fans to visit opposing ballparks that are within driving distance.

The future home of the Rays is in flux, and that decision likely will precede MLB choosing expansion cities, even after the recent news that Florida developer Patrick Zalupski has agreed to pay $1.7 billion for the team.

Zalupski’s team of investors reportedly prefers to keep the Rays near Tampa. If that becomes gospel, MLB can turn its attention to choosing where new teams would call home.

And soon afterward, if Manfred’s vision comes to fruition, geographical realignment would follow, and the Southern California Freeway Series could become just another series between divisional rivals.

Israel’s far-right finance minister has approved plans for thousands of illegal homes in the occupied West Bank — saying it ‘buries the idea of a Palestinian state’. Bezalel Smotrich announced 3,401 illegal housing units will be built in the controversial E1 settlement project.

Aug. 10 (UPI) — Tens of thousands of demonstrators rallied across Israel over the weekend to protest the government’s planned expansion of the war in Gaza as the Israeli Defense Forces itself remained split on the issue.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu‘s office announced Friday that the Security Cabinet had approved his proposal “for defeating Hamas,” which included the IDF taking control of Gaza City, where a million Palestinians still live.

The Security Cabinet adopted five principles that it said would end the war, including the disarming of Hamas, the return of all Israeli captives, the demilitarization of Gaza, Israeli security control over the enclave and the establishment of a new civil administration.

Hamas, in a statement, condemned the Israeli decision as a “new war crime” that it said amounted to “ethnic cleansing.”

“We warn the criminal occupation that this criminal adventure will cost it dearly. It will not be a walk in the park. Our people and their resistance are resilient to defeat or surrender, and Netanyahu’s plans, ambitions, and delusions will fail miserably,” Hamas said.

Hamas said that the plan could endanger the lives of the remaining living captives, and added that Israel is “disregarding the lives of prisoners,” a point echoed over the weekend by Israelis demonstrating in Tel Aviv and Jerusalem.

Bring Them Home Now, an organization representing the families of Israelis still held captive in Gaza, shared a photo on social media of a demonstration Saturday of some 60,000 people gathered in Hostages Square across from the Tel Aviv Museum of Art. It also shared footage of the large crowds marching around the Kirya military base.

“Expanding the fighting endangers the hostages and the soldiers — the people of Israel are not willing to risk them!” the group captioned the post. The organization has called for a comprehensive deal to end the war and return the captives home.

Protesters at the demonstration have reportedly included former IDF soldiers who have since refused to serve as the war continues. Former combat soldier Max Kresch told the BBC that some 350 soldiers who participated in the war were refusing service because the war “endangers the hostages and starving innocent Palestinians in Gaza.”

Families of the captives in Gaza and soldiers who have died in the fighting are now calling for a nationwide strike that would shut down the country’s economy on Sunday, the Israeli newspaper Haaretz reported.

The strike has received the support of Yair Golan, the leader of Israel’s Democrats party, who said Sunday on social media that his party would be participating in the strike.

“I call on all Israeli citizens, everyone who holds the value of life and mutual responsibility dear, to strike with us and take to the streets, to fight and disrupt,” he said. “We cannot continue with routine life in the face of abandoning our brothers and sisters in Gaza. We cannot remain silent in the face of this reality.”

Yair Lapid, the leader of the centrist Yesh Atid party, the major opposition party in Israel, called the strike “justified” in a statement Sunday.

“The call of the hostages’ families to shut down the economy is justified and worthy; we will continue to stand by their side,” he said.

Before the Security Cabinet approved the plan to seize control of Gaza City on Friday, IDF chief Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir reportedly said it was “vital” for Israelis to dissent against the plan, which he warned would “drag Israel into a black hole.” Zamir reportedly said that the operation would take years and expose to Israeli soldiers to guerilla warfare.

RIVAL plans for the multi-billion pound expansion of London Heathrow Airport have been revealed – with a much shorter third runway.

Surinder Arora – behind the Arora Group who are a major landowner of Heathrow – submitted his own designs for the massive airport upgrade.

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Called ‘Heathrow West,’ the £25billion plans are being developed with infrastructure company Bechtel, who were also behind major projects such as the Elizabeth Line, Channel Tunnel and expansions of both London City and London Gatwick.

The biggest change to the addition of the third runway would be making it much smaller – being just 2,800 metres rather than 3,500.

Being smaller, it would mean the airport would not need to divert the M25 under the current plans, which will cost billions and result in traffic chaos.

The new runway could be operational as soon as 2035.

The rival plans also include a new terminal – dubbed T6 – which would open in a first phase by 2036, will a full opening by 2040.

Mr Arora – who also owns Heathrow hotels such as Sofitel, Crowne Plaza and Hilton Garden Inn – said: “I am proud to unveil the Heathrow West proposal which meets the UK’s ambition to grow its only hub airport while delivering on time and on budget.

“The Government’s decision to invite competition rather than hand exclusivity to the incumbent is common sense – and we’re ready to deliver.”

He added: “The Arora Group has a proven track record of delivering on-time and on-budget projects including in and around Heathrow airport.”

With estimated costs of £25billion, this is much cheaper than what is expected of London Heathrow’s plans.

The last estimate from Heathrow was in 2014, with a cost of £14million – although experts have said this could be closer to £47.5billion in today’s prices.

London Heathrow invited rival plans last month, with a deadline of July 31.

The airport is set to submit their own plans later today.

The addition of a third runway was backed by Chancellor Rachel Reeves earlier this year.

However, Net Zero Secretary Ed Miliband and London Mayor Sir Sadiq Khan raised concerns, to do with the local environment.

There are also fears of more expensive flights with the new runway, with the airport asking for the landing fees to be increased to cover the costs.

Currently set at £23.73, this will drop by 2p next year, with the fee passed on from airline to passenger.

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However, easyJet CEO Kenton Jarvis backed the plans, and even suggested they could launch from their.

He previously said: “When it comes to Heathrow, I’ve always thought Heathrow would fit our network of primary airports with great catchment areas.

“It would be a unique opportunity to operate from Heathrow at scale – because obviously right now it’s slot-constrained – and give us an opportunity to provide lower fares for UK consumers that currently at Heathrow just have the option of flag carriers.

“It fits with our network, we’re present at all the other major European airports like Schiphol, Charles de Gaulle, Orly and Geneva.”

In the mean time, here are some other airports undergoing major expansions including London Stansted Airport, costing £1.1billion with a £600million new terminal.

Manchester Airport is undergoing a £1.3billion renovation.

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With plans to expand even further, Heathrow Airport has proposed an expansion, but it will be at the cost of the passengers as ticket prices are set to rise to cover the cost

Heathrow Airport has announced plans for a huge expansion – at the cost of their passengers. Heathrow’s latest business plan suggests that the airport is to take on a further £8bn of debt, leaving their passengers to pay for terminal upgrades in a bid to accommodate an additional 10 million passengers annually by 2031, contingent on an increase in airline fees.

The proposed 10 million passenger increase represents a 12 per cent rise on current numbers, and to do this the airport is exploring the option to raise the average charge per passenger from the current £28.46 to £33.26.

READ MORE: Airport worker shares tip to make your suitcase the first off the plane

Heathrow is Europe’s busiest airport, and has been under plans from the government for a long-term vision of a new runway – which isn’t anticipated to be operational until 2035 at the earliest. So this new proposal offers a quicker route and was submitted to the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) on Friday, detailing upgrades to existing terminals as a means to boost capacity.

Now the CAA is set to review the plans, but it comes after the airport is currently under fire for already being too expensive. Heathrow has reportedly been facing claims from airlines for being one of the world’s most expensive, and have urged the regulator to reduce the charges already

IAG, the parent group of Virgin Atlantic and British Airways, the Heathrow Airline Operators’ Committee (AOC) and the Arora hotel group have joined together in a coordinated attack on the airport’s regulatory regime.

They hope to “conduct an urgent and fundamental review into the way in which Heathrow, the UK’s only hub airport and the largest in Europe, is regulated, for the benefit of consumers, businesses and the UK economy,” as reported by the Independent.

“Heathrow has become the world’s most expensive airport, with passengers and airlines today paying £1.1bn more each year than if charges were in line with equivalent major European airports,” the partners said in a statement. However, Heathrow argue that this investment will make expansion more affordable and less disruptive.

Heathrow chief executive Thomas Woldbye said in a letter to the Transport Select Committee: “One factor is that the airport’s small physical footprint means a lot of our infrastructure has to be underground or built in a unique way, increasing the cost.

“We are also the busiest two-runway airport in the world, meaning the intensity of our operating environment is comparatively more complex and makes it much harder to make targeted improvements and investment while remaining operational.”

Paul McGuinness (Chair, No 3rd Runway Coalition) said: “The astonishing detail in Heathrow’s Five Year Plan is that only £2bn is of its £10bn cost will be funded by shareholder equity; so adding a further £8bn of debt to Heathrow’s current £20bn of arrears.”

He continued: “Heathrow’s business plans shows their determination to grow irrespective of whether or not expansion takes place. The fact that 80% of this investment will be financed through debt reveals a continuation of a strategy to sweat their assets to their limit which brings with it associated risks and higher costs which will no doubt be passed onto passengers.”

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Major expansion plans have been revealed, as one of the UK’s busiest railway stations looks to double its passenger capacity over the next three years – handling thousands of passengers every hour

One of the UK’s busiest railway stations has unveiled ambitious expansion plans to handle millions of extra passengers over the next three years.

Earlier this month (Thursday, July 3) St Pancras Highspeed and Eurostar penned a letter of intent to expand capacity at St Pancras International – to support growing demand for ‘sustainable cross-border travel’. The partnership follows an independent study commissioned last year that explored how the popular station could evolve to meet rising visitor numbers in the future.

According to Rail UK, architecture practice Hawkins\Brown has been appointed to undertake and deliver a detailed design and feasibility study. This will allow the businesses to assess how the station can be reimagined to accommodate more passengers and operate more efficiently.

The expansion will be conducted in three phases, with bold aims for the station to be able to handle a staggering 5,000 passengers per hour by 2028. Phase three will take place in the 2030s, and will explore long-term opportunities to ‘drive growth’ following the capacity increase – including potentially relocating the arrivals flow to upstairs.

READ MORE: Tiny UK airport named country’s quietest only used by 2.8k passengers every year

Richard Thorp, chief operating officer at London St. Pancras Highspeed, said the station was ‘delighted’ to be joining forces with Eurostar to expand its capacity. “With growing passenger demand for international train travel, it is important that St. Pancras International station is future-proofed and optimised to accommodate this,” he added.

“With a shared ambition and collaborative approach, we can ensure our iconic station is ready to support this demand. We’re looking forward to getting started on a new era of connectivity between London and Europe.”

Simon Lejeune of Eurostar also welcomed the news, stating it was ‘proud’ to be part of plans to better the customer experience and ‘reimagine our space for the future’. Describing Eurostar as the ‘green gateway to Europe’, he added: “As we plan to expand our fleet from the early 2030s and increase services to France, Belgium, the Netherlands, and now Germany and Switzerland, this project will play a vital role in enabling that growth and continuing our seamless and unique customer experience.”

The concept design and feasibility study are due to be finished towards the end of the year, when a formal design and construction plan has been developed. At the time of writing, no estimated costs for the project have been released.

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The announcement comes shortly after Eurostar’s monopoly of the Temple Mills depot site has fallen under close scrutiny – with several competitors showing interest in running similar routes from England to France. A report conducted by the Office of Rail and Road (ORR) earlier this year found there is ‘some available capacity’ at the depot for more trains to be stabled, serviced and maintained.

The conclusion was well received by Virgin Group, which says it is now ‘ready to take up the challenge’ of launching high-speed passenger train services through the Channel Tunnel. “The Temple Mills depot is the only facility in the UK which can accommodate European-style trains and claims suggesting it was at capacity have been blocking Virgin from coming to the line,” a spokesperson said. “Virgin is therefore very pleased with the outcome and we thank the ORR for commissioning this report, which will now unlock competition on the cross-Channel route for the benefit of all passengers.”

French manufacturer Alstom is also eyeing up Temple Mills, after signing an €850 million (around £715 million) contract to provide and maintain 12 of its double-decker trains for a Proxima, a private operator in France – as well as France’s state-owned company The Société nationale des chemins de fer français (SNCF).

As previously reported, Chief Executive Henri Poupart-Lafarge says the new fleet could lower fares and increase capacity in the undersea Channel Tunnel. However, it will first need to seek approval from regulators to make sure it adheres to strict Channel Tunnel safety rules.

Meanwhile, Eurostar has already pledged to ramp up its offering as part of a major €2 billion (approximately £1.7bn) investment. Last month, the company announced it would launch a fleet of up to 50 trains that will be in service from the early 2030s, operating three new direct routes. You can learn more about the upcoming routes here.

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Israel’s government has approved a major expansion of illegal settlements in the occupied West Bank. The defence minister said the aim is to prevent a Palestinian state. Al Jazeera’s Nida Ibrahim has more details of the plan.