J D Owen Transport loses appeal for Flintshire truckstop

North Wales operator J D Owen Transport has had its appeal against councillors’ decision to deny planning permission for a new truckstop thrown-out, six years after the application was first made.

Dai Owen, owner of the Mold-based haulage company, claimed he had spent “in the region of £500,000” on the plans, which included parking for up to 60 LGVs, a vehicle workshop, a truck wash and fuelling facilities on a site off of junction 31 of the A55.

He launched the appeal after the application for permission was declined for a second time, but planners at Flintshire County Council ruled the truckstop would cause “visual harm” and “harm to the setting of the nearby listed buildings”.

Owen said: “I was encouraged to go ahead with the plans. Two planning applications later and I’ve got nothing to show for it.”

In 2003, Flintshire County Council included planning policy support for the development of secure truck parking in its Unitary Development Plan, after it recognised the issues the region had with parking for truck drivers.

The plans for the truckstop gained support from the Freight Transport Association and the European Commission.

“Truckers are keeping the country going,” Owen said. 

In an appeal decision document, Flintshire County Council said it recognised the need for a lorry park to “serve a strategic and public interest”, but the proposal was “outweighed by significant visual harm”.

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source: http://www.commercialmotor.com