A clash is looming over plans for the McDonald’s drive-thru restaurant in Bracknell, as council officers have opposed changes.
The McDonald’s drive-thru is situated at The Keep, off the Mill Lane, Wildridings and Ringmead roundabout.
It is a convenient place for Mill Park visitors, neighbours in the Easthampstead area and people driving between Bracknell and Crowthorne.
The huge fast food chain wants to make adjustments to the car park to enable side-by-side ordering at the drive-thru, increasing the ordering lanes from one to two.
This would involve reconfiguring the car park and the loss of two mature willow trees.
However, a clash is due at an upcoming Bracknell Forest Council meeting, as council officers have recommended that the changes be rejected.
The crux of their complaint is that the reorganisation of the car park would lead to conflict between those ‘dining in’ and people using the drive-thru.
Planning officer Shelley Clark accused McDonald’s Restaurants of failing to provide up-to-date data for the operation of the restaurant making the full operational hours clear.
The website states the ‘restaurant and lobby hours’ are from 5am to 11pm each day, without clarifying how long the drive-thru and deliveries are operational.
Without that information, officer Clark assessed that the peak traffic demand for the McDonald’s could not be determined.
She judged that the reconfiguration of the car park would create highway safety issues for all users, including people who walk or cycle, as there are three pedal cycle and three motorbike parking spaces.
The council’s tree officer raised concerns about the loss of two mature willow trees on the site.
However, the cutting down of the willows would be mitigated by the planting of 20 trees off-site, which would all be planted on Bracknell Town Council owned land near Mill Park.
While it has been assessed that the project would result in a loss of habitat and hedgerows, no objection was submitted by the council’s biodiversity officer, subject to details of enhancements being provided by McDonald’s if the drive-thru goes ahead.
Neighbour objections centred around an increase in traffic, pollution and littering in the area, with 33 letters of objection highlighting these issues.
However, 16 people wrote in support of the drive-thru changes, arguing it would provide a “well-designed traffic flow solution” and dedicated lanes to “enhance the customer experience, reduce local traffic bottlenecks, and contribute positively to the surrounding community.”
The project will be decided on by councillors, as councillor Paul Bidwell (Labour, Easthampstead & Wildridings) requested that the planning committee make a decision.
The committee is set to make the decision at a meeting on Thursday, September 11.
You can view the application by typing reference 25/00280/FUL into the council’s planning portal.
