New petrol station and JLR showroom plans move a step closer

A report has been produced in response to Highways England, which recommended the plans for land near the town's business park should be delayed over traffic concerns.

Two planning applications have been submitted to Shropshire Council for the development in Emstrey between the A5 and the B4380 Thieves Lane.

MDG Architects submitted plans on behalf of Hatfields Jaguar Land Rover for the showroom.

Meanwhile, PWA Planning, on behalf of Monte Blackburn Ltd, has submitted a hybrid application seeking full planning permission for the petrol station, drive-through coffee shop, new access, parking and landscaping, and outline permission for a new office park.

Highways England recommended that planning permission was not granted until a combined traffic impact assessment of both proposals is completed, including a junction assessment of Emstrey roundabout.

Now a report has been submitted by Dynamic Transport Planning, which reviews the impact of the development.

The report says that the level of vehicle trips expected to result from the development and comparing this to the background traffic flows at Emstrey Island would lead to an increase of around two per cent in both peak periods.

It adds that the junction will operate "within capacity in all assessment scenarios" and that the development would have no material impact on the operation of the junction.

The report concludes: "Overall it is considered that the issue of development traffic impact at Emstrey Island raised by Highways England has been comprehensively addressed and there remains no outstanding reason why the development, as part of both planning applications, should not be permitted on highways grounds."

The JLR development would see 104 full-time employees on site, 74 of whom will be existing employees, according to the application. The petrol station and drive-through coffee shop would create 15 full-time jobs and 30 part-time jobs.

It forms part of an area designated by Shropshire Council’s Site Allocations and Management of Development Plan (SAMDev) as Shrewsbury Business Park Phase 3, an extension to the existing business park.

It is proposed a single means of access into the site will be from Thieves Lane, as well as providing a new internal estate road for access to the adjacent, JLR development to the south.

Until recently the site was farmland.