A series of planning changes for a forthcoming motorway services area on the A1(M) 15 miles to the east of Leeds have been submitted by Roadchef.
In June 2024 the MSA firm was given full planning permission to construct a £50m services by the J42 Selby Fork Interchange close to the village of Lumby, North Yorkshire. The new facility is designed to fill a “noticeable gap” of services on the A1(M), will cover a six-hectare site and will be based around a 35,000sq ft main amenity building.
A separate filling station and Costa drive-thru will also be constructed, along with parking for 108 HGVs, 351 cars, plus coach, caravan and motorcycle spaces and 26 EV charging bays.
While the firm’s overarching proposals for the site remain unchanged, towards the end of last year Roadchef’s architects submitted an application to North Yorkshire Council to vary the approved plans. The firm said the previous proposales featured “excessive gradients across the HGV access and parking areas”, which, if left unchanged, would create “a design that was both unachievable and unsafe, while also demanding a significant volume of exported earth to be removed from site”.
The site’s HGV parking bays will also be enlarged to accommodate the bigger trucks that have become more common since plans were initially approved in 2019, while the main car park is to be rotated 90 degrees. Additionally, the roof of the main amenity building will feature a less complex structure, and be kitted out with more solar panels.
Unusually for a new MSA, Roadchef’s proposals were met postiively by members of the public, with 221 supporting comments and just eight objections. And while some planning officers had objected to the plans due to green-belt considerations, the lack of facilities on this section of the A1(M), particularly for HGV drivers, saw authorities approve the proposals. The recent alterations are subject to consultation, though, which is due to complete in early February.
