Scorpio delayed
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• Scorpio International's plans to take over an existing operating centre from another United Parcels Group subsidiary, Atlas Express, have been delayed while North Western Licensing Authority Roy Hutchings considers the environmental impact on residents living close to access roads.
Scorpio wants a new national licence for 25 vehicles and 15 trailers based at Higher Walton, Preston, conditional on the surrender of an existing Atlas licence for 10 vehicles and two trailers.
Of 66 representations against the application, Hutchings accepted only 17 as being within the vicinity of the operating centre.
John Bacldiouse, for the company, said the application resulted from a re-organisation at United Parcels. Scorpio is engaged primarily in garment distribution.
The purpose-built operating centre is part of a larger industrial estate.
The representors all live some distance from the site, either on Shop Lane (at the private service road) or in properties backing on to the access road and in his submission they could not be regarded as being in the vicinity.
The access road has a lOmph speed limit and work has started to surface it properly. Many vehicles using the estate have nothing to do with Scorpio.
Representors said that they are concerned about noise and disturbance from vehicles passing along Shop Lane and the access road. There are problems with the smell from exhaust fumes and some dust and mud thrown up from the vehicles. They are also concerned about road safety and by damage to property caused by heavy vibration.
Residents said a lorry had crashed through a garden fence, lorries mounted the pavement in Shop Lane and speed along the access road. They maintain that the grant of the application would lead to an unacceptable reduction in their quality of life.
John Macleod, director and general manager, said a survey showed that of 506 vehicle movements at the estate in one weekend in January only 134 were Scorpio vehicles and some of them were based elsewhere.
Backhouse said that the sole ground of objection arose from the passage of vehicles to and from the operating centre. It is inevitable that traffic generated by an industrial estate will affect the quality of the lives of people living in the area.
He argued that it is outside the scope of the legislation to refuse the application on that ground and that if the objections are to the movement along the access road, rather than to activities at the depot, it would be inappropriate to impose restrictive conditions.
He said that because the bulk of the movements into the estate had nothing to do with Scorpio a refusal would have a minimal affect on the environment.
Hutchings is to announce his decision in writing at a future date.