Lancashire County Council’s cabinet have announced their detailed programme of investment in highways infrastructure over the next year.

The council has already outlined how it will spend most of its £45.8m highways budget on improvements to vital infrastructure such as roads, streetlights, bridges, and walking and cycling facilities.

Advertisements

This is a £14m increase on last year.

Read more: Preston City Council to discuss rough sleeping and homelessness in the city

The Covid-19 pandemic delayed confirmation of the funding which the council will receive from the Department for Transport for the next year, leaving over £13.5m still needing to be allocated to specific schemes.

A report to the council’s cabinet on Thursday 1 April outlined the proposed detailed programme of investment.

This includes £3.4m for resurfacing schemes to the busiest A, B, and C roads, £2.4m for resurfacing lengths of over 40 residential roads, and £1m to reconstruct pavements.

Read more: Baker St Cakes will be a new addition to Fulwood

£3m will also be prioritised for repairing small areas of damage to 60 roads, where the repairs needed are too extensive to be treated as a pothole, but the rest of the road has not deteriorated to the extent that it needs to be fully resurfaced.

The proposed schemes have been prioritised taking into account where repeated pothole repairs have previously been made, as well as being reported by residents.

A further £2.12m has been identified for further surface dressing schemes, where a ‘tar and chippings’ treatment is used to seal the road and protect it from moisture, along with anti-skid treatments and renewal of reflective cat’s eyes.

£0.22m has also been allocated for resurfacing sections of rural ‘moss roads’ which need special maintenance due to the wet and peaty ground they’re built upon, along with £0.62m for upgrading traffic signals, and £120,050 for repairs to a bridge.

Read more: Prestonians encouraged to remain vigilant as restrictions begin to ease across the city and county 

Phil Durnell, director of highways and transport for Lancashire County Council, said: “Lancashire’s highways infrastructure is vital to our economy and daily lives, ensuring that people and goods can travel safely and efficiently.

“It’s therefore important that we continually invest in maintaining our highways to keep them in good condition.

“We use data from surveys and inspections to identify the right time to carry out maintenance and, wherever possible, extend the life of our infrastructure before more extensive and expensive repairs are needed.

“We look forward to carrying out these improvements over the next year, and while we always plan carefully to try to minimise disruption while we carry out repairs, we’re grateful for people’s patience which also helps to ensure the safety of our workforce and members of the public.”

Find the latest news updates in your area below

Read more: See the latest Preston news and headlines

What do you think about this investment? Let us know in the comments below.

Advertisements