Rival service station bids head North Yorkshire agenda
Roadchef and Moto both head to committee with approval recommended for facilities on the A1.
North Yorkshire Council’s strategic planning committee will consider the plans at its 10 December meeting.
The Roadchef proposal
Approval is recommended for a new motorway service station at Junction 52 of the A1(M), at Pallett Hill Farm, Catterick.
Roadchef wants full permission is sought for a motorway service area including shops, restaurants, lounges and tourist information plus drive-thrus for Costa and McDonald’s, and a 100-bedroom hotel.
The application site is around 27.85 acres and is a former gravel and sand quarry located between the A1(M) to the west and Catterick Racecourse to the east.
The site consists of grassland used as pasture by Pallett Hill Farm, as well as wetland areas that have formed within the areas of the site where gravel extraction had taken place. The nearest settlement is Catterick village, 950m to the south-east. The village will be accessed from a new footpath and cycleway.
Officers said that the proposed development aligns with the spatial strategy for development in the North Richmondshire sub-area and the council’s development plan.
Roadchef’s plans were first considered in 2021 at Richmondshire district level with a resolution to approve, but following the change of planning authority, are being referred to North Yorkshire level, particularly in light of Moto’s Barton plan (outlined below), where National Highways has now withdrawn its objection.
Officers said that 269 letters have been submitted from individuals, 87 in support and the rest objecting. There are objections from several parties on environmental grounds.
Roadchef is working with Davis Planning Partnership and PPL. The planning reference is 19/00473/FUL.
Moto responds
In a major upgrade of the existing Barton Truck Stop, outline planning permission is sought for the construction of a motorway service area at Barton Park, including a 12,836 sq ft amenities building, petrol station, HGV fuel station, drive-thru coffee shop, parking, landscaping and internal roads.
Planner Smith Jenkins and architect BCA Design, formerly Barry Chinn Associates, are advising.
The site is two miles north of the A1(M)’s junction with the A66, and is accessible from both directions of the A1(M) via the A6055.
Also included is a new roundabout junction and other highway works on the A6055. The application site is an 11.5-acre parcel of land situated to the east of junction 56 of the A1(M). The site also includes a section of the A6055, which is situated to the north and provides vehicular access into the site via a T-junction.
The site is currently occupied by a fuel filling station, amenity building including retail store and café, and car and HGV parking. Much of the site is taken up by hardstanding, however, there are also areas of maintained grassland and trees. Existing buildings would be demolished.
In effect, Barton Park as it strands functions as a satellite operation of Scotch Corner services, two miles to the south.
As reported by officers, there are no current objections from statutory consultees. The proposals have echoes of Cheshire, where Moto announced plans to expand its Lymm truck stop, following Westmorland Group’s bid to open its latest offer at Tatton.
The planning reference is 22/00479/OUT
