SEVENOAKS will see a spike in its air pollution if Gatwick Airport expands as planned.

The huge passenger hub is expected to grow to welcome 40 million travellers a year by 2020.

But Sevenoaks District Council (SDC) has warned the level of car fumes will go through the roof if this goes ahead as the M25, M20 and M26 – all of which run the length of the district – will become more crowded than ever.

In an invited response to the Gatwick master plan, SDC said the points where these motorways pass through Sevenoaks are designated Air Quality Management Areas.

As a result, the council would like to see an increase in public transport links throughout Sevenoaks and Tonbridge, to lessen the burden on the major roads if the expansion goes ahead.

The report sent to Gatwick developers concedes that the airport is a major employer for many Sevenoaks residents and an important part of the economy.

But it said the increase in carbon dioxide as a result of the expansion would have a huge impact on the district and therefore residents' needs must be taken in to account.

The council is also concerned about the increasing noise levels on the southern edges of Sevenoaks, near Edenbridge.

At a SDC environmental select committee meeting on Tuesday, district councillors cast doubts on how Gatwick officials had arrived at their numbers.

Cllr Leslie Ayres said: "I can't see how they've got these figures.

"To me, 40 million passengers per year seems an extraordinary number. It just seems too big.

"That's 109,000 people every day. Where on earth would they go?"

But committee chair Ian Bosley pointed out councillors had to work with the numbers they had been given.

He added: "The main concerns we have are access and the level of noise and flyovers.

"That is what we have been asked to address."