PROPOSALS to build a new motorway service station on the M4 at Bridgend’s junction 37 have been submitted to the county borough council.
The plans from the Draycott Group are for a development on land off the M4, close to the Pyle interchange at junction 37, with a potential new access road also built off the northern carriageway of the A4229.
If approved by council bosses, it could eventually see the development of a petrol station, electric vehicle charging points, and three drive-through restaurants.
These could include a McDonald’s, Starbucks and Greggs, along with associated seating areas and toilet facilities.
The plans also say these would occupy separate, individually designed buildings with dedicated parking facilities on the site.
The service area would be near to several large residential areas including the villages of North Cornelly, Pyle, and Kenfig Hill.
Plans add a total of 125 people could eventually be employed at the site, equating to 78 full-time equivalent jobs which are described as being “particularly attractive” to a younger age group.
The full application came after a formal pre-application which was carried out with the local planning authority in 2022, though this acknowledged the proposal “did not draw a positive response from the council”.
The report said: “The council considered that further justification would be required to demonstrate that there was an ‘overriding need’ for this type of development in this specific countryside location.”
There were additional concerns the site could draw people away from the Porthcawl area, increasing car journeys, and becoming “destination in its own right”.
However, further planning justification by developers argued motorway-related developments are “inevitably located in countryside, away from town centres”, as they cannot be sited elsewhere by definition.
The closest service areas to the proposed Pyle site are at Sarn to the east and Swansea West to the west, with the two being about 25 miles apart.
Once up and running, the services would be open on a 24-hour basis and for 365 days a year.
