New £40m services plan for M1 in South Yorkshire

The site, to the south-west of the junction, is predominantly woodland

Plans have been unveiled for a new £40m motorway service station on the M1 in South Yorkshire.

A 20-acre (eight hectare) site at junction 35 near Chapeltown in Sheffield, which is largely woodland, has been chosen for the development.

Extra Motorway Service Area (MSA) Group said there was a need for services there as drivers were having to go up to 42 miles without the chance to stop.

It said the development would create the equivalent of 300 full-time jobs.

A public consultation on the plans has begun before the company submits a planning application to Sheffield City Council in the autumn.

Safety role

Leaflets have been distributed to nearby homes and two exhibitions are being held at Ecclesfield School on Friday evening and Saturday morning so people can ask questions and make comments.

Andrew Long, chief executive of Extra MSA, said it hoped to be able to start construction work next summer, with completion in the summer of 2015, if planning permission was granted early next year.

He said guidance indicated that for safety, drivers should have the opportunity to stop on a motorway journey every 30 minutes or 12-28 miles depending on traffic conditions.

But drivers coming to the M1 in South Yorkshire from the M18 were having to go 42 miles.

He said: "Motorway service areas, obviously they are a commercial enterprise, but they do also play an important road safety role.

"If people are having to travel in excess of half an hour's travelling distance between service areas then that can give rise to fatigue-related accidents."