Local Councillors Urge Residents To Keep Up The Fight Against 24-Hour Mcdonalds Plans

2.09.52pm UTC (GMT +0000) Tue 22nd Jan 2008

Local Councillor Munira Wilson (née Hassam) is continuing the campaign to stop the proposed McDonalds Drive-Thru at Apex Corner on the Twickenham/Hanworth border extending its opening hours.

McDonalds has submitted a second planning application to alter its opening hours to 24 hours at the weekend and until 2am during the week, after the first one was turned down following strong opposition from residents and councillors. The planning application has gone out to public consultation and West Twickenham councillors are distributing their own letter to encourage residents to respond. Cllr Wilson said "Council officers quite rightly turned down the first application by McDonalds to extend its opening hours on the basis of 'unneighbourly increase in noise, disturbance and pollution…during unsociable hours'. This was a victory for residents who were overwhelmingly against the proposals given their ongoing problems with McDonald's litter, smells and noise."

"Nothing has changed, yet McDonald's seems determined to get its way and thinks that as a large multi-national it can ride roughshod over local opinion. 86% of residents who responded to our survey about McDonald's during the last planning application were against the extended opening hours - their front gardens are constantly used as litter bins by customers and they have to put up with fat smells from the site. I am encouraging them all to lodge their objections once again to this fresh application." McDonalds has submitted a noise assessment with the current application which claims that noise from the drive-thru lane and car park will have no detrimental impact on neighbours, and that machinery noise on site will be controlled

Cllr Wilson commented, "McDonald's is in no position to say that increased traffic into the drive-thru during the night and any associated anti-social behaviour will have no detrimental impact on neighbours. A number of residents commented during the last application how they already experience disturbance from revving engines, rowdy behaviour and slamming car doors late in the evening by McDonald's customers. These proposals will only exacerbate the situation."