Developer Richard Carr of Fortitudo wins appeal to build drive-through takeaway on Barrack Road in Christchurch

A DEVELOPER has been allowed to build a controversial drive-through on a busy Christchurch roundabout after winning an appeal.

BCP Council failed to make a decision on time about the plans which Fortitudo, run by Richard Carr, submitted for what’s known as ‘Advertising Corner’ at the junction of The Grove and Barrack Road.

There had been 150 objections from local residents, and Christchurch mayor Viv Charratt also spoke against it.

She said the town council should object on the grounds of traffic and highways issues and that the proposal was contrary to planning policies.

The takeaway would cause “increased congestion” and “slow down the bus route”, she said.

But a planning inspector found the application was an “appropriate” use of the land.

They also were “confident” in the findings of Fortitudo’s modelling which assessed the effects of traffic using the drive-through on congestion in the area.

This found that customers would “already be driving along either The Grove or Barrack Road” and that only 20% of visitors would be making a “specific journey to the restaurant”.

The inspector said that traffic generated by the takeaway would “therefore be low and the corresponding increases to traffic queues and travel times would not be significant”.

They also felt that queues for it would “back-up onto the surrounding road network” and that there would be no harmful effect on highway safety.

The developer said they intend to put a toucan pedestrian crossing on the eastern arm of Barrack Road and a zebra crossing across The Grove, which the inspector found would improve road safety.

Referring to residents’ objections, he said the applicant did not need to demonstrate a need for the takeaway so the fact there were other drive-throughs nearby had no bearing.

He said that no “substantiated evidence” had been given which showed the proposed restaurant would give “rise to unacceptable levels of noise, anti-social behaviour.”