A NEW petrol filling station will replace the current facility at Old Craighall, near Musselburgh, after the plan was given the green light by East Lothian Council.

The Motor Fuel Group (MFG) proposes to knock down the petrol station already there and replace it with “an enhanced roadside services offer” which will be open 24 hours a day as part of the redevelopment of Monktonhall Services.

A drive-thru coffee shop is also earmarked for the site as part of a separate plan which has received the green light from the council.

The former Travelodge building has been demolished and a new hotel is no longer planned, with the development having an increased focus on HGVs.

Five HGV fuelling pumps will be located to the south of the site. There will be rest area for HGVs, complete with a shower and toilet block for drivers’ use.

This facilities block will be formed from a former tourist information block on the site and a secure parking area will have space for up to 34 large vehicles.

A new petrol filling station – including a retail kiosk and forecourt including six pumps, three jetwash bays, two air/vac/water bays and an ADBlue tank enclosed by 2.5-metre-high galvanised metal palisade fencing and gates – is a key part of the plans.

Eight charging points for electric vehicles will also be created and there will be 15 car parking spaces.

There will also be a bin store, sheltered cycle parking and landscaping, and an internal road layout is planned at the site, which is located at the junction of the A1, Edinburgh City Bypass and B6415.

No public objections were raised to the application, which was decided by planners under the council’s scheme of delegated powers.

Musselburgh and Inveresk Community Council was consulted and did not respond, a planning report said.

The document said that the development would provide “improved facilities to enhance the operation of an existing motorist’s service area”. The service area was an “established development and commercial use” within the East Lothian countryside, it added.

The MFG previously said that, if planning consent were granted, it was hoped the redevelopment would be completed this year.