Ruling on TWO new drive-thrus near the M6 in Preston

Preston City Council has ruled an environmental impact assessment (EIA) must be undertaken into plans for the development – which would include two drive-thru outlets – on farmland close to junction 31A of the M6.

If permission is ultimately granted for the ‘Frontier Park’ scheme, it will see the creation of almost 86,000 square metres of space – across five buildings – that could be used for either “general industrial” purposes or storage and distribution.

The nature of the drive-thru units has not yet been revealed, but they could operate as eateries, based on the planning classification being proposed by applicant Monte Blackburn Limited.

City planners were asked earlier this month for a so-called “scoping opinion” of the project – at Little Rough Hey Farm, off Bluebell Way – and have concluded that an ‘environmental statement’ resulting from the EIA process must be provided as part of the application.

In a consultation response to the scoping request, government advisory body Natural England said a “robust assessment of environmental impacts and opportunities” should be carried out.

The organisation has also stressed that the environmental statement should “fully consider the implications of the whole development proposal” – including by factoring in the cumulative impact of other completed or proposed developments in the vicinity.

As the Local Democracy Reporting Service previously revealed, roads authority National Highways has already warned about the possible effects of the scheme on the M6 and the junction 31A turn-off for Preston East and Longridge.

It said the restricted layout of that interchange – which has only southbound entry and northbound exit slip roads – meant the proposal could have knock-on effects across a wider area.

National Highways suggested the applicant considers how the use of a route via junction 31 of the M6 – the Tickled Trout Hotel exit – could be “mandated and enforced” for commercial traffic visiting the site from the north. Vehicles would then be able to turn around and travel back up to junction 31A to access the new estate.

If returning north after their trip, they would also be expected to use the same circuitous option – travelling south from junction 31A to 31, before leaving the motorway and rejoining to head back in the opposite direction.

The proposed routing is designed to avoid traffic being funnelled onto local roads via use of junction 1 of the M55.