Increased drop-off charges at Leeds-Bradford Airport could lead to safety hazards and a knock-on effect on the environment, it is claimed.

A decision to increase the fee by 200 per cent for minibuses has drawn criticism from councillors.

Minibuses with eight or more seats will now be charged £6 to drop off or collect travellers – up from £2 when the so called ‘kiss and fly’ tax was introduced in 2011. Guiseley and Rawdon councillor Paul Wadsworth said: “I have serious concerns about these increased fees.

“Vehicles going to the airport with eight or more seats take private cars off the road, and at a time when local people are increasingly concerned about traffic congestion around the airport, we should be incentivising the use of these vehicles. These increased charges do the opposite.

“Furthermore, these changes are likely to take us right back to when the charges were introduced – with people dropping off fares at the side of the road to avoid the charges. The problems will only be magnified with the larger vehicles. There are safety considerations to think about here, and I think the airport should reconsider.” Otley and Yeadon councillor Ryk Downes described the increase as “regrettable”, stressing that passengers travelling together in a minibus would use less fuel and affect the environment less than if they used several cars.

The airport is stressing that its new charges will not affect cars and taxis. The charges for those remain unchanged.