Second Geraldton 7-Eleven to face development assessment panel, but won’t have highway access

The site for a second 7-Eleven service station in Geraldton is set to face the development assessment panel next week, but plans indicate it won’t be accessible from the highway despite the site being adjacent.

The Spalding site, bound by North West Coastal Highway, Webberton and Flores roads, was set to be a bigger service station than the previously approved site on Durlacher Street next to Rigters IGA.

According to the development application, eight refuelling bays are set to be included for the $2.9 million development which was proposed to be open 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

The land is vacant, and would include 23 parking bays, including eight bowser bays and four caravan and trailer bays.

The Traffic Impact Assessment indicated the service station would generate 1396 vehicle trips per weekday, including 85 during peak hour in the morning and 95 in the afternoon, falling in the “moderate” band of the guidelines.

However, the document stated passing trade accounted for about 60 per cent of those trips, meaning the net additional traffic was 559 trips.

However, the plans indicated the service station would only be able to be accessed through Flores Road, following a Main Roads WA assessment.

“The North West Coastal Highway and Webberton Road intersection will need to be modified to provide an adequate level of service for right turn movements from Webberton Road onto North West Coastal Highway,” the document read.

A roundabout had been flagged as a possible solution to help ease the increased traffic, with Main Roads WA understood to be considering the project in their future works program.

However, the documents state the roundabout had not yet been funded, and did not have a timeline for when the project would begin.

The application included a technical note which stated the intersection was “capable of operating sufficiently in the interim”, but future improvements would be required.

The report indicated a drive-through restaurant was also being considered for the site, but was not part of this application and would be considered at a later date.

The application is set to go before the panel on Tuesday, April 8.