TRANSPORT chiefs are moving ahead with a project designed to make Leeds Bradford Airport easier to get to, which could ultimately benefit North Yorkshire residents.

Proposals to look at ways of improving access to the airport by road and rail were announced by ministers last summer, and the Department for Transport has said it hopes to complete the study by the end of the year. Transport Minister Baroness Kramer said it was "a long-running issue" and hoped the project would "unlock real progress".

She said: "I want to see this airport reach its full potential with the transport links it deserves." In 2005, a masterplan for the potential expansion of the airport said a purpose-built rail link could be built between the existing Harrogate and Wharfedale lines, and Harrogate Chamber of Commerce has said better connections are needed between the airport and North Yorkshire communities.