Green light expected as Burger King return with revised plans for Morecambe drive-thru

Burger King wants to re-open on the site they originally occupied in Hilmore Way.

The new proposals include plans to reinstate the drive-thru lane at the restaurant, which would wrap around the existing restaurant unit.

The proposals were due to be heard by a city council planning committee in March, but were withdrawn before the meeting.

But new plans will now be heard at a meeting on June 19 which take into account traffic concerns expressed by Lancashire County Council Highways team as well as city council officers.

The land is owned by Lancaster City Council, but planning officers had initially recommended the scheme be refused.

Despite saying the proposals would bring an "empty and deteriorating" site "back into an active economic generating use", they said the scheme failed to provide adequate capacity for vehicles queuing to use the proposed drive through.

They were concerned this would result in queuing vehicles on the shared access road, on the adopted highway Hilmore Way, and across the designated cycleway, leading to queuing traffic, delays, and blocking of access.

"These significant negative impacts on the local highway and cycling network would be detrimental to highway safety," they said.

Burger King say they have now addressed the issues, and made changes including alterations to the drive-thru to increase the overall length of the lane, changes to the car park circulation to alter the arrival route for vehicles using the drive-thru lane and pedestrian footway connections to both Hilmore Way and Central Drive and associated crossing points, to better accommodate linked trips from surrounding uses.

In addition, dropped kerb crossing points are included along with electric vehicle charging points (one to a blue badge space).

A relocated loading bay is also proposed as a result of the above changes.

As a result, city council officers are recommending the plans be approved when the planning committee meets on June 19.

Burger King has another restaurant in Morecambe town centre, next to the Arndale Centre, and also opened a new restaurant in Lancaster city centre in October.