Architect Maurice Rodger has mooted the mile-long sky travelator as an affordable solution to the Glasgow Airport rail link which he claims would cut the cost from £144 million to just £10m.

Mr Rodger of ID>A Design has drawn up a rough plan to create a new train station on the Glasgow to Wemyss Bay line near the Ferguslie Park housing estate in Paisley. This would then combine with a covered moving walkway which he estimates could take pedestrians to Glasgow Airport’s main terminal in just eight minutes

A recent report found that Glasgow City Council’s plans for a tram-train link from the city centre to the airport would struggle to justify the expected £144m cost. The tram-train link was mooted after the Scottish Government cancelled plans for a direct rail link in 2009 as a result of the economic crisis. As a result of Glasgow’s City Deal, the idea was resurrected with a specially designed tram and a relocated Paisley St James station planned to reduce journey times.

Mr Rodger said: “The idea came about because of the latest news that the latest study to take a tram to the airport was deemed to be uneconomic and possibly damaging to Ayrshire and parts south and west of the airport.

“My colleague and I were chatting away and when you think of it a train station and walkway would be considerably less expensive than a train or tram link.”