Lancashire County Council has approved a new junction between Preston and Penwortham designed to make life easier and safer for pedestrians and cyclists.

The CYCLOPS junction features an orbital track circling the junction to separate cyclists from general traffic and is a part of the Penwortham to Preston Cycle Superhighway.

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A report to this week’s cabinet meeting outlined responses to a formal consultation on the proposed Broadgate CYCLOPS scheme in April, which followed an earlier public engagement exercise offering people the chance to find out more about the plans and have any questions answered.

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County Councillor Charlie Edwards, the cabinet member for highways and transport, said: “I’m very pleased that we are at the forefront of using new techniques such as the CYCLOPS junction to encourage more people to walk and cycle.

“Currently, pedestrians and cyclists have no option but to cross the traffic, which can lead to conflicts with vehicles and can be intimidating, creating a potential barrier to people choosing to walk or cycle.

“This new type of junction is designed to be safer by providing some separation between cyclists and vehicles and allows cyclists to cross efficiently rather than in stages as they wait for other vehicles to go first.

“This junction is a key part of the wider scheme to encourage active travel along this Penwortham to Preston corridor and will complement the improvements we’ve already put in place.”

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Edwards said the council is grateful to those who engaged with and responded to the consultation and looks forward to seeing work start in the autumn.

The junction upgrade is part of the Penwortham to Preston Cycle Superhighway scheme, which will improve facilities for those cycling or walking the mile between the Cop Lane junction and Preston Railway Station.

The CYCLOPS junction improvements at Broadgate form a part of the active travel corridor between Penwortham and Preston.

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The scheme aims to make it easier and safer for pedestrians and cyclists to use the busy junction and improve safety for people using the Preston Guild Wheel route.

The Department for Transport’s Active Travel Fund (Tranche 2) is funding the work.

CYCLOPS is an abbreviation of Cycle Optimised Protected Signals, a unique junction type that separates pedestrians and cyclists from motorised traffic, reducing the risk of collisions or conflict.

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Transport for Greater Manchester developed the award-winning concept about to be used for the first time in Lancashire.

The main feature is an external orbital cycle track that circles the junction and protects cyclists from general traffic, allowing everyone to use it safely.

Cyclists can make a right turn at the junction and complete the turn in one movement (dependent on signal timings) – removing the need to cross traffic lanes or make the turn in multiple crossing stages.

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For more information, visit – https://www.lancashire.gov.uk/roads-parking-and-travel/active-travel/

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