A vital truck stop in Leicestershire has been ordered to close down after the planning inspectorate said the “severity of the risk to life” could not be underestimated.
The Bardon Truck Stop’s owner, Brett Parker, said he had built the site up from scratch five years ago and there had never been an accident at the lorry park.
He claimed that a falling out with the landlord of a Greene King-owned pub next door, which it shares access with, had spiralled into a legal fight which had resulted in it receiving an enforcement notice served on it by the local council.
And despite it appealing, the truck stop must now close down in three weeks.
Speaking to HGV 1 Radio, Parker said: “I was given four weeks to close the business but by the time legal teams sent the information I’d only got three weeks from now.
“I have put so much hard work into this place, it’s unbelievable - me and my team.
“I have got trucks coming here left, right and centre and over the five years there has not been one accident with our shared access; however, they are deeming it unsafe and unsuitable, therefore my planning permission and appeals have been denied.
“We are creating business for everyone else and providing a safe place to park. I feel really, really upset.
“This is North West Leicestershire, the area that’s pointed out as having the highest need for truck parking and here I am trying to make a business survive and they have shut me down.”
In the appeal decision, planning inspectorate John Braithwaite said customers to the Charnwood Arms next door passed through space where HGVs made right angled turns to or from the site.
He said the potential for collisions between lorries and pedestrians had been identified in a road safety assessment, with the likelihood of a collision calculated as one every five to 10 years.
“As commented in submissions, the conflict between pedestrians and HGVs in front of the Charnwood Arms is ‘…an accident waiting to happen’,” Braithwaite said.
“The simple truth is that HGVs are manoeuvring, on a regular basis, through a small area that is traversed by customers and guests of the Charnwood Arms.
“The severity of the risk is, as noted in the [risk assessment], ‘potentially fatal’, and there are no measures that could be introduced to mitigate the risk.
“The severity of the risk to life cannot be underestimated and the use of the site must cease as soon as is reasonably possible.”
Parker said: “We have toilets, showers and 24-hour security and now all that is coming to an end.
“My legal team is looking at other areas but within three weeks I don’t think anything can be done about it. It’s already cost me a fortune.”
A spokesperson for the Charnwood Arms said: “We note a recent decision by the Planning Inspectorate to support an enforcement notice by North West Leicestershire district council against Bardon Truck Park.
“The truck park first opened during the Covid-19 lockdown when pubs were closed and at the time was described as temporary, so this is a return to the original position.
“We do not like to see any business forced to close or move, but the planning inspector confirmed that the current arrangement is dangerous for our customers.
“We must prioritise the safety and wellbeing of our teams and customers, and we had serious concerns about the multiple HGVs that had to cross our car park to access the truck park, which is why we supported the council’s case.”
The RHA said it was calling on officials in Leicestershire to help secure new driver facilities.
“As an association, we’re urging the local council and MP to quickly help facilitate alternative safe and secure facilities for lorry drivers operating in the area,” a spokesman said.
North West Leicestershire district council did not respond as we went to press.
