The shuttle runs in both directions at an average speed of 35 km per hour and completes the 585-metre route between the airport and rail station in less than 1.5 minutes.

The passenger capacity is 800 per hour in each direction.

The rail station is on the following routes: Birmingham-Coventry, Birmingham-Northampton, Birmingham-Euston, Birmingham-Bournemouth, Birmingham-Aberystwyth, Birmingham-Holyhead and Birmingham-Manchester.

The average journey time is 1 hour 15 minutes minutes to London Euston and 10 minutes to Birmingham New Street.

Please visit our guide to Birmingham International Rail Station for more information.

There are five more hotels at the adjoining National Exhibition Centre: Crowne Plaza, Hilton Metropole, Ramada Encore, Premier Inn and the Express by Holiday Inn.

Etap contains 120 rooms with toilet, shower & satellite TV; each room can accommodate up to 3 guests; breakfast is included; guests must pay for airport parking.

Novotel is outside the passenger terminal at Birmingham Airport.

This hotel contains 95 guest rooms, a 24/7 bar, a fine-dining international restaurant, an exercise room and 6 meeting rooms, the largest of which can hold 35 theatre-style; pets are allowed by arrangement.

This hotel contains 162 guest rooms with wi-fi, a 24/7 bar, restaurant and self-service business centre; pets are allowed; guests must pay to use the airport car parks.

However, passengers can fly from Birmingham to virtually anywhere in the world via international hubs at Amsterdam, Frankfurt, Munich, Newark, Paris CDG etc.

The 2,600-metre runway is too short for direct long-haul traffic.

Plans to divert the A45 and extend the runway by 410 metres have been approved. The extension will increase the range of destinations and could double passenger numbers from 9 million in 2009 to 18 million by 2025.

It was reported in April 2010 that the extension might not be completed until 2017 due to problems caused by the recession; however, funding and planning consent were in place (News Archive 10/04/10).

It was reported in September 2010 that the runway extension might be shortened in order to reduce the length of the A45 diversion and cut the overall budget from £120 million to £65 million (News Archive 18/09/10).

The cost of diverting the A45 has been calculated at around £32 million to be paid by Centro £15 million, Birmingham Airport £7 million and Birmingham City Council £15 million.

Birmingham City Council was having difficulty raising its share in January 2011 and so an application to the Regional Growth Fund was considered (News Report 14/01/11).

Work on the extension began in March 2011.

In February 2011, a passenger was treated by first-aiders after he collapsed shortly before boarding a plane; the passenger subsequently died, apparently as the result of a long-term medical condition; however, the incident raised fresh concern about the level of paramedic cover at the airport (News Archive 15/02/11).

This cap was temporarily increased in June 2011 because air traffic was abnormally low in 2010 and because industrial freight, particularly vehicle components, were being diverted from Coventry Airport (News Headlines 10/06/11).

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