elphin local area plan 2009 - 2015 - Roscommon County Council

Chapter 10: Development Management Guidelines and Standards
thus may be inappropriate within the traditional town centre. As such facilities are geared towards bulky
shopping such facilities must also be served by adequate car parking.
10.12 LOCAL SHOPS & PETROL FILLING STATIONS (To be read in conjunction with
Chapter 5)
Local shops play an important role in providing for daily top up shopping. They are also often easily
accessible to the elderly and disabled. The development of such local shops should be encouraged in the
smaller towns and villages in the counties and also in residential areas in the suburbs of the larger estates
in the principal county towns. Such developments should be easily accessible to all sections of society.
Local shops attached to petrol filling stations are a growing sector of the retail market. Such facilities
do play an important role, particularly in serving some of the more isolated rural communities. However,
care should be given to the development of such facilities on the edge of town centres as they may have a
negative impact on established convenience outlets within the town centre. As stated in the Retail
Planning Guidelines, the size (net sales area) of such retail units should not exceed 100 sq metres.
New petrol stations and refurbished existing stations will be required to have a high standard of overall
design and architectural layout to ensure an attractive development that integrates with and enhances its
surroundings. The forecourt canopy should be integrated into the overall design and sited so that it does
not dominate the surrounding buildings. Applications must be accompanied by detailed landscaping and
screening proposals, providing details of the type, location and timescale of planting. Another necessity in
applications is the provision of details of signage and their proposed location. Advertising should not
interfere with visibility lines; be visually intrusive; or, interrupt the continuity of streetscapes.
Petrol filling stations must be located on the outskirts of the town but inside the 50km or 60km speed
limits and the creation of a traffic hazard must be avoided. The preferred location is on the near side of the
roadway on the way out of town. However, the Council will seek to avoid the proliferation of such uses
along a stretch of road, or within a particular area in a town or village where such development may result
in loss of visual and residential amenity. Applications for motor fuel filling stations will not be supported
by the Council where a proposal is likely to lead to an impairment of the visual or residential amenity of
the area through intrusive commercial frontage and signage, nuisance, disturbance or excessive traffic
movements.
Where petrol filling stations are proposed in rural areas, traffic safety will be of paramount importance.
They would be best placed in villages or in close proximity to other compatible uses such as shops and
post offices etc. The expansion or addition to existing such businesses would be preferable.
A road frontage of at least 21.5 m is required for a new petrol station. The frontage must be kept clear of
any structures (with the exception of the boundary wall) for a depth of not less than 4.5 m from the street
or roadside boundary of the site. No pump, hose pipe or other service may be situated less than 4.5 m from
the street or roadside boundary of the site, nor may it be adapted to serve a vehicle standing on the public
street. Where petrol pumps and other services are sited not less than 9m from the street or roadside
boundary of the site, the street frontage of the station may be reduced to 12m. The station should not have
more than two vehicular openings onto a street. The width of each opening should not exceed 7.5m. The
street or roadside boundary of the station shall be defined, except at openings, by a wall or railing to a
height of not less than 0.5m over the level of the adjoining street. Kerbs and footpaths shall be dished in
accordance with the detailed requirements of the Roads Authority.
The following standards must be observed in relation to the siting of filling stations near a junction:
• where the street width is greater than 15m a vehicle entrance or exit shall not be sited nearer to a
road junction than 33.5m, in the case of a junction with a street 15m in width or over, or 23m in
the case of a junction with a street of between 7.5m and 15m in width;
Elphin Local Area Plan 2009-2015 Page 132