A new Tebay-style motorway service station is to be built on green belt close to the Bowdon Roundabout after being given the green light by the government.
Cheshire East Council had voted in favour of the new Tatton Services at Junctions 7 and 8 of the M56 back in October 2023, but the plans were delayed after then government minister Michael Gove referred the final decision to the Planning Inspectorate.
Its inquiry has judged that the 100-bed hotel, farm shop and petrol station on 39 acres of green belt land - a joint venture between Westmorland Family, known for its facilities at Tebay Services on the M6 and Gloucester Services on the M5, and the Tatton Estate - should go ahead.
The scheme is expected to generate 325 new jobs and attract an expected four million customers annually, generating £36million in annual turnover.
Trafford Council had originally objected to the plans, saying it would be "inappropriate development in the Green Belt, harming openness and visual amenity", with Bowdon Conservation Group also against the plans.
But today Housing and Planning Minister Matthew Pennycook, on behalf of Secretary of State Angela Rayner, approved the plans.
Explaining his belief that the new service station would not have a negative economic impact locally, he said: "The extent to which the proposal would be likely to act as a local destination in its own right, as opposed to a destination of choice for motorists making a long journey on the strategic road network, would be extremely limited and that there is no basis to conclude that it would result in unsustainable patterns of travel in general."
The land could also be considered "grey belt", the minister added, referring to terminology introduced by the government to label areas of 'low quality' green belt that could be reclassified to allow development.
He concluded that "there is a need for an MSA [motorway service area] in this location... [and] that there is a demonstrable unmet need for the type of development proposed".
There was "no realistic prospect of an equivalent alternative site", the report added.
