Motorway services could be 40% larger than planned

Junction 2 on the M55 - now known as Edith Rigby Way - opened in July

A proposed new motorway service area on the M55 near Preston could be 40% larger than first planned.

It emerged last year that a site alongside junction 2 of the motorway was being eyed as a stop-off point by Moto.

However, Moto has now submitted new documents to the authority which reveal a huge increase in the footprint of the development.

If granted planning permission, the facility would become the first motorway service outlet on the M55.

The junction 2 exit opened less than 12 months ago, connecting to the new Preston Western Distributor Road.

Plans for the service station include a petrol filling area, food and shop outlets, toilets, a 360-space car park and a separate lorry park – is set to grow from the originally-envisaged 17 acres (6.8 hectares) to 24 acres (9.6 hectares).

According to correspondence sent to the town hall by the agent for the application, the change is necessary as a result of “drainage requirements, the avoidance of some ecological features and to account for access to the site”.

Preston City Council planners concluded in October that an environmental impact assessment would not be required for the new service station.

The development would be accessed from a second roundabout to be created close to the one that links the M55 and the distributor road – now known as Edith Rigby Way – which runs through to the A583 at Riversway and Blackpool Road.

While the revised proposal – although only indicative in terms of layout – does not suggest any change to that arrangement, it does note that highway officials at Lancashire County Council have expressed “slight concern” about the “safety of the junction arrangements” for the service area.

'Habitat enhancement'

However, the authority had otherwise been “positive” about the scheme, according to the documentation lodged with the city council – and the applicant said detailed plans for the junction set-up would be covered within a travel assessment that will form part of the full planning application.

It is proposed that the size of the overall site grows even further than the built-up aspect – so that it spans 34 acres (13.9 hectares) in total.

Around 9.8 acres (four hectares) of the broader plot would be to deliver “habitat enhancement”, with no built development proposed for that area.

The increase is designed to enable Moto to aim to deliver a 20% increase in biodiversity on the site – as opposed to the 10% required by regulations – in order to address comments made by Preston City Council during pre-application discussions.

The authority has now been asked for a second so-called “screening opinion” on whether an environmental impact assessment is needed, taking into account the proposed changes.