I was discussing recently the issue of air traffic with my colleagues in the office. One of them found some very interesting facts, like the busiest international airport in the world is London Heathrow and the busiest national airport hub is in Atlanta, USA. In Heathrow, an average of more than 7700 passengers pass by every hour, which means that during the 17 hours a day the airport is in operation, 131,000 people pass through. Atlanta could have even higher figures.
I’m trying to get with these facts and figures to the issue of time spent on security checks in an airport. If we calculate that the 131,000 people will spend on average 10 minutes each being checked, it comes out at approx. 21,806 hours (909 days!!!!) from one single airport. Paying somebody £10 an hour for this service can cost the tax payers up to £79,628,400 per year, and this is only from one single airport.
The security issue is not something to be undervalued or taken lightly; on the contrary, security puts our minds at rest so we can travel safely. However, when this is pitted against cutting back on social welfare, it brings home the truth that we need to create dialogue to address the needs of society and of every citizen in our country.
Very True!
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