Windsor - impact of third runway?
Discussion
The Moose said:
I never found Windsor to be THAT bad (although I didn't actually live there, just visited a lot). Datchet I found unbearable just for a few minutes.
I worked and sometimes slept in Datchet for 10 years and you do get used to it, the only one you really noticed was Concord and the 777 that came over much lower than normal. Thought it was going down until we realised there was some birthday celebration flypast !!We’re about 6 miles West of Windsor, slap under the flight path. We have an enormous advantage that they are much higher as they pass over us, we tend to hear them sticking the flaps down as they head over to Windsor, by the time they get there, the flaps are fully down (loads of engine and air noise).
Pollution? We’ve never noticed anything, I didn’t know if a Dyson fan is an accurate measure of pollution, but it basically says “zero” - it goes nuts if I use it in London.
Departing planes don’t bother us at all, when they’re doing westerly approach, we get them landing all the time. You get used to it - as a trade off we have zero traffic noise, and it’s only a 20 minute cab to the airport.
The really important point to bear in mind is that it is very location dependent when they’re low. The difference between “right over head” and “a mile away is huge”. Depending on which runway they’re using for landings, we either get “right overhead”, or “up the top of the field” - the latter are barely noticeable.
Note also that they are getting a lot quieter. Talking to people who’ve been here for ages, take offs used to be an issue - because the planes had much less power and were thundering overhead trying to gain altitude. These days, they’re at about 7000 feet and turning before they are anywhere near us. Modern planes are also much quieter on landing - quite often when a 380 goes overhead, I notice the shadow before I notice any noise. Everyone binning 747s will really help, they’re lovely to see, but they are noisy b
ds.
Pollution? We’ve never noticed anything, I didn’t know if a Dyson fan is an accurate measure of pollution, but it basically says “zero” - it goes nuts if I use it in London.
Departing planes don’t bother us at all, when they’re doing westerly approach, we get them landing all the time. You get used to it - as a trade off we have zero traffic noise, and it’s only a 20 minute cab to the airport.
The really important point to bear in mind is that it is very location dependent when they’re low. The difference between “right over head” and “a mile away is huge”. Depending on which runway they’re using for landings, we either get “right overhead”, or “up the top of the field” - the latter are barely noticeable.
Note also that they are getting a lot quieter. Talking to people who’ve been here for ages, take offs used to be an issue - because the planes had much less power and were thundering overhead trying to gain altitude. These days, they’re at about 7000 feet and turning before they are anywhere near us. Modern planes are also much quieter on landing - quite often when a 380 goes overhead, I notice the shadow before I notice any noise. Everyone binning 747s will really help, they’re lovely to see, but they are noisy b
ds. I live in Windsor, and have for around 15 years now.
Let’s get the basics out of the way first - if plane noise is a concern, Windsor is not the place for you. You adjust to it quite quickly, and I’m fine with it, but it’s always going to be there.
Going into the specifics of your question - noise of the planes varies dramatically depending on how close to being overhead they are, and it’s very obvious whether they’re using the north or south runway (for example). The third runway is to the north of the current two, and if you’re in the north of town I imagine it will increase noise.
Rumour is it that plans for expansion are delayed due to the virus impact on travel, and they’re not anticipating getting back to pre-covid levels until 2025.
Air pollution I can’t comment on. Seems fine to me, but I done suffer with asthma or anything...
ETA: the closer you are to the long walk, the noisier the planes are as they’re lower... Similarly if you’re directly under one of the the flight paths it’ll be noisier than not.
Let’s get the basics out of the way first - if plane noise is a concern, Windsor is not the place for you. You adjust to it quite quickly, and I’m fine with it, but it’s always going to be there.
Going into the specifics of your question - noise of the planes varies dramatically depending on how close to being overhead they are, and it’s very obvious whether they’re using the north or south runway (for example). The third runway is to the north of the current two, and if you’re in the north of town I imagine it will increase noise.
Rumour is it that plans for expansion are delayed due to the virus impact on travel, and they’re not anticipating getting back to pre-covid levels until 2025.
Air pollution I can’t comment on. Seems fine to me, but I done suffer with asthma or anything...
ETA: the closer you are to the long walk, the noisier the planes are as they’re lower... Similarly if you’re directly under one of the the flight paths it’ll be noisier than not.
Edited by DanL on Sunday 21st February 11:49
Thanks for all the replies.
To be more precise, we are looking around clewer green/clewer new town ish areas.
Near the big tesco tnere.
If the planned date for completion was late 2018/early 2019, surely that must have changed/been put back now?
If it is 10 years or more till it becomes fully operationall, then that's a long time, and other than a fall in house prices due to the extension, probably not an issue for many years.
Will it affect house prices in Windsor area going foreward?
My problem now is that reason can't prevail as my partner seems intent on anywhere else but windsor.
House sale going through soon, haven't found a place to buy yet and now ruling out the only place we have viewed in the 2 months we have been locking.
I dispair.
To be more precise, we are looking around clewer green/clewer new town ish areas.
Near the big tesco tnere.
If the planned date for completion was late 2018/early 2019, surely that must have changed/been put back now?
If it is 10 years or more till it becomes fully operationall, then that's a long time, and other than a fall in house prices due to the extension, probably not an issue for many years.
Will it affect house prices in Windsor area going foreward?
My problem now is that reason can't prevail as my partner seems intent on anywhere else but windsor.
House sale going through soon, haven't found a place to buy yet and now ruling out the only place we have viewed in the 2 months we have been locking.
I dispair.
When I was looking at moving I used this to get a gauge on what things might be like:
http://xplane.emsbk.com/xplane/
http://xplane.emsbk.com/xplane/
Busa mav said:
We moved from Wokingham 14 years ago because of the noise from planes , from 04.30 am when they start stacking before the airport opens , unbearable in the end.
I'm with 'bks' on this one too. In six months we will mark 20 years living in Wokingham and the only plane that you could ever hear was Concorde. If you're bothered by plane noise here then god help you.We lived there from 1979 through to 2010, the early morning noise from them stacking can be awful.
We sleep with a window open and it became too much for us.
Rest of the day was fine , just early mornings.
You can call bks as much as you want, that’s how it is there and it was the primary reasons we moved, with constant traffic congestion being a close 2nd.
We sleep with a window open and it became too much for us.
Rest of the day was fine , just early mornings.
You can call b
ks as much as you want, that’s how it is there and it was the primary reasons we moved, with constant traffic congestion being a close 2nd.Impossible to say if it’ll impact prices, but Windsor has always been relatively expensive, and I’d expect that to continue. It’s a tourist destination / good night out, with shops, restaurants and bars/pubs well in excess of what you’d expect for a town of this size as a result.
Also, plane noise is already an issue - I believe it’s already priced in.
In respect of Clewer New Town - I lived in a block of flats at the junction of Imperial Road and St Leonard’s Road (Imperial Court if you want to get specific) - plane noise was “fine” there. Much quieter than Fountain Gardens where I moved after. I’m now not far from where you’re looking, south of Dedworth and in one of the roads off Hemwood Road. Plane noise is hard to judge, as I moved during lockdown. They’re easy to hear, but easy to talk over.
The further west of town, the higher the planes and quieter it is. However, as previously mentioned you will hear the planes. You can do things to address this - good double (or triple!) glazing and acoustic loft insulation will help, but if you sleep with a window open I can assure you for at least the first week (until you begin to tune them out) you’ll be awoken 5:30-6:00 with the first arrivals.
That all said, I just used a dB meter app. Silence in my lounge is 25 dB. Plane coming in went up to 36 dB. TV at my “normal” listening volume is ~45 dB. No idea if that helps!
I can’t be bothered to stand outside to get the dB reading for the next plane.
Also, plane noise is already an issue - I believe it’s already priced in.
In respect of Clewer New Town - I lived in a block of flats at the junction of Imperial Road and St Leonard’s Road (Imperial Court if you want to get specific) - plane noise was “fine” there. Much quieter than Fountain Gardens where I moved after. I’m now not far from where you’re looking, south of Dedworth and in one of the roads off Hemwood Road. Plane noise is hard to judge, as I moved during lockdown. They’re easy to hear, but easy to talk over.
The further west of town, the higher the planes and quieter it is. However, as previously mentioned you will hear the planes. You can do things to address this - good double (or triple!) glazing and acoustic loft insulation will help, but if you sleep with a window open I can assure you for at least the first week (until you begin to tune them out) you’ll be awoken 5:30-6:00 with the first arrivals.
That all said, I just used a dB meter app. Silence in my lounge is 25 dB. Plane coming in went up to 36 dB. TV at my “normal” listening volume is ~45 dB. No idea if that helps!
I can’t be bothered to stand outside to get the dB reading for the next plane.
Busa mav said:
We lived there from 1979 through to 2010, the early morning noise from them stacking can be awful.
We sleep with a window open and it became too much for us.
Rest of the day was fine , just early mornings.
You can call bks as much as you want, that’s how it is there and it was the primary reasons we moved, with constant traffic congestion being a close 2nd.
To address this - I’ve never heard aircraft stacking over Windsor. It might be me, it might be that they stack elsewhere. You absolutely will hear them landing early on if you’ve got a window open and aren’t yet used to tuning the sound out. We sleep with a window open and it became too much for us.
Rest of the day was fine , just early mornings.
You can call b
ks as much as you want, that’s how it is there and it was the primary reasons we moved, with constant traffic congestion being a close 2nd.Little Lofty said:
normalbloke said:
It’s not going to be up and running for many years yet! By which time they’ll all be electric. So we’re told...
That will be the day I stop flying, bad enough worrying about running out of battery in car, never mind at 30,000 feet 
Running out of battery is more inconvenient than running out of fuel in the middle of a car journey because it takes so much longer to charge than fill up
Running out of fuel unexpectedly in the middle of a flight would be just as inconvenient(!) as running out of battery at the same moment
Flights are planned with mandated reserve fuel, I'm sure battery capacity would be mandated in the same way
Many years off anyway given the low energy density of batteries at the moment compared to fossil fuels
DanL said:
Busa mav said:
We lived there from 1979 through to 2010, the early morning noise from them stacking can be awful.
We sleep with a window open and it became too much for us.
Rest of the day was fine , just early mornings.
You can call bks as much as you want, that’s how it is there and it was the primary reasons we moved, with constant traffic congestion being a close 2nd.
To address this - I’ve never heard aircraft stacking over Windsor. It might be me, it might be that they stack elsewhere. You absolutely will hear them landing early on if you’ve got a window open and aren’t yet used to tuning the sound out. We sleep with a window open and it became too much for us.
Rest of the day was fine , just early mornings.
You can call b
ks as much as you want, that’s how it is there and it was the primary reasons we moved, with constant traffic congestion being a close 2nd.I live on Bexley Street in Windsor. Planes landing on the northern runway into an easterly wind are at approximately 1900ft, and 1/4 mile south, of my back garden, and are certainly very noisy in the summer with the windows open. In the winter with windows shut we don’t notice them. On the rare occasions they land on the southern runway on easterlies (like today, for instance), we don’t notice them even from the garden - they’re a mile or so further south - so it illustrates the importance of plotting the flight paths with respect to the house you’re looking at. Have a look on Flightradar24.
For westerlies, taking off over Windsor, you only really hear the occasional noisy older aircraft, freighters late at night especially. Modern aircraft like 787s and A350s are noticeably quieter, and that will only get better as fleets get newer.
The biggest impact to Windsor will be when the Cranford Agreement gets scrapped, so takeoffs (and hence landings over Windsor) on easterly operations are shared equally between north and south runways. That will route a lot more planes south over the Great Park rather than the town centre. It’s on hold until after COVID, but it looks like it will finally happen in the next year or so.
It’s quiet tonight mind you; not a single aircraft on approach into Heathrow. Can’t think why ;-) For all the moaning, the procession of planes on approach is part of the scenery in Windsor. When I flew every week or so for work, the novelty of being able to see my house from the left side of the plane never wore off, and the kids enjoyed flashing the garden lights as the plane flew over!
For westerlies, taking off over Windsor, you only really hear the occasional noisy older aircraft, freighters late at night especially. Modern aircraft like 787s and A350s are noticeably quieter, and that will only get better as fleets get newer.
The biggest impact to Windsor will be when the Cranford Agreement gets scrapped, so takeoffs (and hence landings over Windsor) on easterly operations are shared equally between north and south runways. That will route a lot more planes south over the Great Park rather than the town centre. It’s on hold until after COVID, but it looks like it will finally happen in the next year or so.
It’s quiet tonight mind you; not a single aircraft on approach into Heathrow. Can’t think why ;-) For all the moaning, the procession of planes on approach is part of the scenery in Windsor. When I flew every week or so for work, the novelty of being able to see my house from the left side of the plane never wore off, and the kids enjoyed flashing the garden lights as the plane flew over!
LHRFlightman said:
Terminator X said:
LHRFlightman said:
Terminator X said:
They seem to fly low over Windsor already imho. A few years ago plane numbers did go up albeit the airport tried to argue they had changed nothing! A lot of people complained then it went back to "normal" .
TX.
Sorry TX, but that is bTX.
ks. TX.
Certainly not enough a day for someone to notice the difference.
January 2014 40,210
February 2014 41,762
March 2014 42,684
April 2014 43,372
May 2014 44,334
June 2014 43,239
July 2014 43,450
August 2014 42,740
September 2014 42,838
October 2014 41,353
November 2014 37,772
December 2014 37,298
January 2015 37,136
February 2015 35,057
March 2015 39,910
April 2015 39,714
May 2015 41,340
June 2015 40,633
July 2015 41,745
August 2015 41,784
September 2015 40,485
October 2015 40,490
November 2015 36,973
December 2015 37,206
January 2016 36,973
February 2016 36,188
March 2016 39,190
April 2016 39,509
May 2016 41,409
June 2016 39,949
July 2016 41,650
August 2016 42,014
September 2016 40,616
October 2016 41,139
November 2016 37,712
December 2016 36,896
January 2017 37,125
February 2017 34,874
March 2017 39,411
April 2017 39,477
May 2017 41,017
June 2017 40,515
July 2017 41,846
August 2017 41,983
September 2017 40,623
October 2017 41,016
November 2017 38,417
December 2017 37,735
January 2018 38,061
February 2018 35,144
March 2018 39,109
April 2018 39,859
May 2018 41,144
June 2018 40,342
July 2018 41,772
August 2018 41,719
September 2018 40,455
October 2018 41,486
November 2018 37,999
December 2018 38,534
January 2019 37,713
February 2019 35,131
March 2019 39,849
April 2019 40,264
May 2019 41,577
June 2019 40,826
July 2019 42,062
August 2019 41,952
September 2019 38,986
October 2019 41,518
November 2019 37,945
December 2019 38,310
TX.
CharlesdeGaulle said:
Terminator X said:
LHRFlightman said:
Terminator X said:
They seem to fly low over Windsor already imho. A few years ago plane numbers did go up albeit the airport tried to argue they had changed nothing! A lot of people complained then it went back to "normal" .
TX.
Sorry TX, but that is bTX.
ks. TX.
TX.
TX.
andharri said:
When I was looking at moving I used this to get a gauge on what things might be like:
http://xplane.emsbk.com/xplane/
That's one of mine. http://xplane.emsbk.com/xplane/
pete said:
I live on Bexley Street in Windsor. Planes landing on the northern runway into an easterly wind are at approximately 1900ft, and 1/4 mile south, of my back garden, and are certainly very noisy in the summer with the windows open. In the winter with windows shut we don’t notice them. On the rare occasions they land on the southern runway on easterlies (like today, for instance), we don’t notice them even from the garden - they’re a mile or so further south - so it illustrates the importance of plotting the flight paths with respect to the house you’re looking at. Have a look on Flightradar24.
For westerlies, taking off over Windsor, you only really hear the occasional noisy older aircraft, freighters late at night especially. Modern aircraft like 787s and A350s are noticeably quieter, and that will only get better as fleets get newer.
The biggest impact to Windsor will be when the Cranford Agreement gets scrapped, so takeoffs (and hence landings over Windsor) on easterly operations are shared equally between north and south runways. That will route a lot more planes south over the Great Park rather than the town centre. It’s on hold until after COVID, but it looks like it will finally happen in the next year or so.
It’s quiet tonight mind you; not a single aircraft on approach into Heathrow. Can’t think why ;-) For all the moaning, the procession of planes on approach is part of the scenery in Windsor. When I flew every week or so for work, the novelty of being able to see my house from the left side of the plane never wore off, and the kids enjoyed flashing the garden lights as the plane flew over!
The impact of Cranford on operations is going to be around for a lot longer than a year.For westerlies, taking off over Windsor, you only really hear the occasional noisy older aircraft, freighters late at night especially. Modern aircraft like 787s and A350s are noticeably quieter, and that will only get better as fleets get newer.
The biggest impact to Windsor will be when the Cranford Agreement gets scrapped, so takeoffs (and hence landings over Windsor) on easterly operations are shared equally between north and south runways. That will route a lot more planes south over the Great Park rather than the town centre. It’s on hold until after COVID, but it looks like it will finally happen in the next year or so.
It’s quiet tonight mind you; not a single aircraft on approach into Heathrow. Can’t think why ;-) For all the moaning, the procession of planes on approach is part of the scenery in Windsor. When I flew every week or so for work, the novelty of being able to see my house from the left side of the plane never wore off, and the kids enjoyed flashing the garden lights as the plane flew over!
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