Parcel lockers near a supermarket and a busy shopping area of Bracknell could be removed after a bid to keep them was soundly rejected.
Parcel lockers at the Birch Hill Shopping Centre in Bracknell are facing removal after a proposal to keep them was rejected by local council members.
InPost Parcel lockers, installed near Aldi in April, offer a handy way to send and receive packages. However, their placement was deemed problematic, lacking planning permission, which raised concerns among nearby residents about parking and noise.
The lockers are positioned near double yellow lines that prohibit parking, leading to complaints about safety and community disturbance. Councillors voted against a retrospective application to keep the lockers, highlighting the disruption they cause.
Conservative Councillor Tina McKenzie-Boyle commented, “I can’t support this application. They could have found a more suitable site.” Also agreeing, Labour Councillor Jenny Penfold mentioned that Aldi could have approached the application process in a conventional manner.
Further criticism came from Councillor Tony Virgo, who noted that the lockers encourage bad parking and that Aldi has a history of similar planning issues.
Planning officer Kevin Lloyd Jones recommended retaining the lockers for reducing delivery traffic and boosting local business. However, the councillors were not swayed, ultimately rejecting the plan on November 6. For more information, you can check the rejected application under reference 25/00281/FUL on the council's planning portal.
Aldi has been offered a chance to respond to the councillors' allegations.
James Aldridge, Local Democracy Reporter
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