Portugal’s capital Lisbon welcomed 18.76 million tourists last year and continues to be one of the most popular city destinations in Europe. However, the city has recently banned night flights.
Between 1am and 5am local time, flights will no longer travel in or out of Lisbon’s Humberto Delgado Airport. The decision followed years of protests from local citizens.
The late flights have been an issue in the city for a while, disrupting the sleep of the locals. So, the government decided to listen to the complaints from citizens, environmental groups and the local council.
The government had previously introduced a law that capped the number of night flights after Portuguese environmental NGO Zero had requested one in the summer, warning that the planes were causing air and noise pollution.
However, the organisation claimed that the airport was in violation of its limits and reported as in The Portugal News, Zero had recorded an extra 115 flights in two weeks from Humberto Delgado Airport.
Aeroporto Fora, Lisboa Melhora, a group of citizens who are for the new law, are still unconvinced of its benefits as they claim the flights are still scheduled during the time of the ban, and its announcement is not clear on whether it is a total ban or whether delayed flights will still be allowed to land.
There is also the concern that Humberto Delgado Airport, which is located seven kilometres from Lisbon’s City Centre, will be expanded as it is an old airport.
A potential improvement of it could cost €300 million (£250.6 million) and take three years to complete, causing further noise disruptions for the locals.
Citizens have also been campaigning for a new airport to be built outside the city rather than upgrading the current one.
Miguel Pinto Luz, Infrastructure and housing minister, labelled the ban as a “giant step forward”. However, there is no date for when the ban will begin.