Dunkin’ Donuts has received the go-ahead to begin preparations for building a new drive-thru branch after planning permission was approved by Sheffield City Council on Tuesday.

The chain, which already has three branches in Sheffield, is set to be built in the car park of the current KFC site in Lowfield, allowing for a more efficient use of space.

Councillor Peter Price said: “Now that we’ve protected the River Sheaf wall, I think it’s brilliant.

“I know it doesn’t go a long way down, but it’s setting the pattern for the future and hopefully one day it’ll become a cycle route.”

The Sheffield and Rotherham Wildlife Trust and the Sheaf and Porter Rivers Trust had objected to the earlier plans.

Both parties raised concern with the siting of the proposed building, which they felt would obscure the river, and said that this could be an opportunity for new biodiversity improvements that make use of the river.

The plans were altered from the previously proposed application after these concerns about the nearby river. Changes included moving a bin shed away from the river and instead replacing it with benches, pathway for cycling and landscaping.

The Sheaf and Porter Rivers Trust said in a statement: “Dunkin’ Donuts had ignored the proposed walkway in their design and now, with a simple resiting of their dustbins, have made the walkway a lot nicer.”

The new application was approved at a Planning and Highways Committee meeting on March 5.