The battle to stop McDonald’s from building a 24-hour drive-through next to a protected nature reserve has taken a new turn.

This week, the fast-food giant submitted a revised planning application for the restaurant within the Tice’s Meadow and Tongham Ponds Site of Nature Conservation Interest, near Tongham Services.

The new submission to Guildford Borough Council addresses some concerns raised by objectors, including recognising that the development is within a regionally important nature reserve.

Campaigners, who have gathered more than 6,000 petition signatures, still believe the development will harm protected habitats and wildlife, as well as cause noise, litter, and pollution.

Mark Elsoffer, chair of the Tice’s Meadow Bird Group, said: “We’re trying to take the emotion out of it and, while we appreciate that McDonald’s has recognised the sensitive nature of the site, which is a positive thing, we still completely object to the development.

“We are currently going through 100-plus pages of bird-related assessments and then we’ll make further comments at a later stage.”

McDonald’s was approached for comment but had not responded at the time of publication.