Invest

30th November 2009

The green light has been given for a controversial major inland port complex near Doncaster which developers promise will create more than 5,000 jobs by the middle of the next decade.

Councillors on Doncaster's planning committee voted unanimously in favour of the plan for the 1,000 acre site near Rossington despite opposition from the parish council, villagers and countryside campaigners.

The rail and road terminal, which could be up and running by 2014, should also push forward the building of the long-awaited Finningley and Rossington Relief Road Scheme to improve links from the M18 to Robin Hood Airport.

At least four trains hauling up to 50 wagons of containers from abroad will be transported from East Coast seaports to Rossington every day.

Helioslough spokesman Simon Hoare said after the committee's decision: "This really underscores the fact that Doncaster will be at the heart of transport logistics in this region.

"All of the warehouses will have a direct rail connection. It is the size, with space for long trains, and proximity of the motorway network that makes this the optimum site."

Part of the site is on green belt land off Bankwood Lane and is bounded by Loversall Carr and Potteric Carr nature reserve.

Yorkshire Wildlife Trust had originally objected to the scheme but withdrew them after negotiations with developers about a green ecological cushion between the sites which will be funded by Helioslough.

But Cllr Terry Wilde, speaking on behalf of Rossington and the Campaign to Protect Rural England, said they could not justify the destruction of green belt landscape. He maintained there would still be more than 6,000 road-based lorry movements each day and it was false to designate it as a railport.

Cllr Wilde was also concerned surfacing such a large area would create flooding risks and disputed the developers' claim there would be thousands of jobs.

"This is pie in the sky and you know it and you should reject this application," he said, but none of the committee voted against it.

The granting of outline planning permission is conditional on rail tracks being laid from the goods line and the East Coast Main Line before warehouses are built.

The scheme must also be connected to the Finningley and Rossington Relief Road Scheme and the old Rossington Colliery site to maximise regeneration.

The council's decision is subject to confirmation by the Government before detailed plans are submitted and it is unlikely work would start before 2013.

CPRE South Yorkshire is demanding the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government holds a public inquiry so the case can be thoroughly examined.

CPRE planning officer John King said: "This isn't an Inland Port - it's a bog-standard road distribution centre with just a bit of a rail facility bolted on."