Villagers from Elmswell, Woolpit, Tostock, Norton, Wetherden, Drinkstone, Great Ashfield, Badwell Ash and the surrounding areas are being asked to sign a petition and comment in objection to a planning application (DC/21/06333 | Full Planning Application) that would be detrimental to the area.

Euro Garages, owned by the two brothers who run Asda, is planning a service station with a drive-through takeaway next to the HGV testing site. 

The drive through has been described by Euro Garage’s planners as a ‘development of a petrol filling station, a drive-thru restaurant and coffee shop’. And given their current sites, it’s likely to be a Starbucks, KFC or Burger King. 

Euro Garages is the same organisation that owns Beacon Hill service station near to Needham Market, where there have been reports of a significant rat population, attracted by the litter left by irresponsible users of the service station. 

As well as the landscape impact, loss of open space and being out of character with the area, here’s just a few more of the reasons why you should sign the petition against the development of a service station in Elmswell and Woolpit:

• Air pollution would increase due to increased traffic on the roundabout and the surrounding roads, leading to a lower quality of life for residents including families with young children in Elmswell, Tostock and Woolpit, and increased risk to those with asthma and other conditions that can be worsened by air pollution
• An increase in traffic would lead to more dangers for cyclists and pedestrians
• Majority of users would not be the local population but passing motorists who would most likely fail to respect the local area
• As seen at other similar sites, Litter would increase, potentially leading to an increase in rats. Rats are adventurous and will venture very quickly outwards towards the nearby residential premises (rats can travel several miles in one night), causing an unstoppable nuisance and being a significant risk to our thriving hedgehog population - with Elmswell and Woolpit being prime and significant locations for endangered hedgehog populations.
• The increase in traffic would not only be a risk to hedgehogs but also put at risk other wildlife that use nearby fields in the area including the majestic Brown Hare
• There is the potential for Crime to increase, with the service station acting as a meetup hub for crime, drugs and substance misuse during the dark of the night
• Drive throughs should be banned – drivers need to take breaks for safety reasons so remaining seated in the car to get a coffee is not much of a break, and then to drink it, you have to take one hand off the wheel. This increases risks of accidents or fatalities on our doorstep
• There is a distinct lack of disabled friendly parking spaces
• Any new stations being built should be primarily for Electric Vehicle charging - but this application has only a handful of charging points planned
• There is already a local service station in Woolpit. It’s unnecessary to have a competing fuel station
• The land has been deliberately cut for a while, with short grass to manage it, possibly to influence the ecology report. The proposed plans for planting are minimal and lacking in substance
• Obesity is likely to increase, adding further health issues and impact onto our hard-working NHS workers, with a Starbucks tall Vanilla Latte having a good 26.4 grams of sugar in, 88% of your daily recommend maximum intake of sugar

We need a cycle and walking path with easy and safe access between Elmswell and Woolpit and not another obstacle that only creates more traffic and dangers for locals. YES!

Sign the petition and make a comment on the council’s website to Planning Application number DC/21/06333:

https://planning.baberghmidsuffolk.gov.uk/online-applications/applicationDetails.do?activeTab=makeComment&keyVal=R2ZCHHSHKPC00

Supported by Mid Suffolk Green Party