Solihull
Solihull
Road: M42 at J4 and J5aLocation: Solihull, West Midlands
Developer: Extra or Welcome Break
This page is about the service areas currently planned around Solihull. For other services on the M42, see Services on the M42.
The name Solihull services has been attached to two competing service area proposals planned for the M42, which currently sit with Solihull Metropolitan Council.
Strictly speaking there is no reason why both couldn't be built, but the local authority is likely to conclude that only one service area can be justified, if any.
Extra Plan
The Extra plan involves building a new interchange on the M42 to the north of Solihull Road. A new dual carriageway would run from the western roundabout, under Solihull Road, to the new service area by Walford Hall Farm.
The usual facilities would be provided including a large amenity building with a grass roof, a large lorry park, and a large petrol station. A footpath would connect to Solihull Road. The adjacent building at Walford Hall Farm would be brought into use as offices.
What makes this development unusual is that Highways England are also planning to build a new interchange here. Their new M42 J5A would only have slip roads facing the south, but includes roundabouts that Extra's service area can be connected to. Extra are willing to pay for the remaining slip roads, and even for the interchange if the M42 J5A plan is cancelled. Extra are also willing to fund the conversion of the M42 to 'All Lane Running' to support the new interchange.
Curiously, Extra have suggested construction would start within six months of planning permission being granted, but Highways England have suggested M42 J5A wouldn't be ready until 2024. The two would have to work together to address any issues there.
Extra's plan was revealed to the public with a public consultation in December 2014. The planning process has been extended due to the rival application from Applegreen.
This site has a long planning history, as is explained later on. It was generally known as Catherine-de-Barnes, but Extra are keen to call it "Solihull services". Residents have been vociferous in their objection to service areas here, and previously formed the group "Solihull Against Motorway Service Areas".
Applegreen Plan
Knowing that the Extra plan had objectors, in July 2016 Applegreen went public with their plan to build a service area at the eastern side of M42 J4, at Box Tree Farm.
Applegreen's plan was designed to be discreet. It would be smaller than the Extra plan, and smaller than the previous plan here. Access would be provided directly from the roundabout, with an exit onto Gate Lane.
A large grass roof would be provided, covering both the building at the petrol station. There would also be a drive thru coffee shop.
At the time of the application, Applegreen were keen to break into the UK motorway market. They have since achieved this by purchasing Welcome Break. It is therefore not clear if Applegreen are still especially enthusiastic about this proposal (beyond any business's wish to expand). If built, it would carry the Welcome Break name, and hold their franchises.
The planning process has dragged on, partly to resolve concerns from Highways England about certain details of the road layout. On 7 June 2019, Highways England signalled that a special session of the planning committee would have to be postponed a second time.
Planning History
Incredibly, debate about a possible service area at Solihull goes back at least as far as 1969, meaning this is probably the longest-running debate on the UK road network.
When the M42 here was being planned, there was going to be a service area called "Friday Lane". It would have been positioned on both sides of the motorway, and prompted complaints from residents. In 1971 and 1973 it was discussed in the press, and described as being about 60 acres in size.
When the M42 opened in 1976 there was no evidence of a service area being planned here. In 1978 it was confirmed that Friday Lane was officially cancelled, being replaced by Black Firs between J6 and J7.
Black Firs didn't happen, and when services did open on the M42, they left a large gap between the M40 and the M6.
In 1992, the responsibility for planning service areas was passed to the private sector.
In 1993, Blue Boar proposed building a service area at Walford Hall Farm (the Extra site), which they hoped to have open by 1997. Meanwhile, in 1998 Extra planned a service area at M42 J5. Finally, in 1999 Shirley Estates proposed a service area at Box Tree Farm (the Applegreen site).
The Blue Boar plan involved building a new flyover to provide access to the M42. The Shirley Estates plan would have involved adjusting the route of Stratford Road. Routes in and out of the service area would have passed through a large roundabout, and then exited via a large loop.
These three proposals were all taken to a public inquiry in 1999. In 2001, the Secretary of State refused permission for the Shirley Estates and Extra plans for being inappropriate development in the green belt, but was "minded to give permission" to the Blue Boar/Walford Hall Farm plan. However, this permission was never given.
In 2001, Shirley Estates submitted an updated version of their scheme. This would have been positioned further from Stratford Road. Another big change was that Extra confirmed that they had permission from Blue Boar to pursue the Walford Hall Farm proposal. Blue Boar had been taken over by Roadchef in 1998, so it's not clear exactly when that permission was granted, or whether Roadchef had actually been representing the scheme during that first inquiry.
In 2005, John Prescott reopened the inquiry, saying circumstances had changed. The main change was that in 2006 the new Active Traffic Management system (the forerunner to what's now called a 'smart motorway') was going to open. The new inquiry refused the new Shirley Estates plan, and also refused the outstanding Walford Hall Farm plan on the basis that it wasn't compatible with the new layout for the M42.
Unfortunately for Extra those perceived safety risks were only an issue there and then. A few years later, smart motorways would be built past frequent exits and service areas with no concerns raised. However at the time the 'smart motorway' was still a novel concept, and the prospect of taking away the hard shoulder completely seemed ridiculous.
Some may have expected the rejection of all options in 2009 to draw a line under the matter. Then in 2010 the Highways Agency published a list of gaps between motorway service areas, and the gap on the M42 (specifically between Warwick and Hilton Park) was raised as the highest priority.
In 2014, Extra presented two options which could be built at Walford Hall Farm. The design was updated to reflect new ways of thinking, such as the green roof. The hotel was removed from the plan, and the building was moved closer to the hill. Meanwhile in 2016 Applegreen brought a smaller and more discreet proposal for Box Tree Farm to the table.
Visitor Feedback
Visitors can leave public feedback on their experience by logging into the CommentBox app. You can do so quickly below:
Views expressed in these comments are those of the individual contributor. User accounts are managed by CommentBox.io. Registration helps prevent automated spam.
We ask the companies named to check here, but we can't force them to do so.