Planning application submitted for new Preston Western Distributor road

Plans have been officially submitted for a major new road – the Preston Western Distributor – linking Preston and southern Fylde to the M55 motorway.

The application by Lancashire County Council also includes two new roads connecting to new and existing housing areas of North West Preston and Cottam.

These new roads will help to promote new housing and business development in the area, while increasing capacity on the existing local road network.

There will also be opportunities for new bus priority measures, improvements to local public areas and improvements to encourage walking and cycling.

The application will be determined by the county council's own Development Control Committee.

Subject to planning approval, work on the new roads will start as soon as the land has been acquired. To assist in this process the county council has recently approved the use of compulsory purchase order powers.

This scheme is possible thanks to funding from central government, via the Preston, South Ribble and Lancashire City Deal.

County Councillor John Fillis, cabinet member for highways and transport, said: "This is another major step for this scheme to deliver a new road to this area, providing additional capacity to the network, helping people to get around and supporting new economic growth in the area.

"A new motorway junction will improve travel times for people coming to and from the city, while also relieving congestion on other parts of the road network.

"Through City Deal we’re unlocking the potential of the area, bringing new jobs and new homes for people.

"We're already seeing major changes across the area through our City Deal, such as the Broughton Bypass and expansion of the A582, as well as improvements to town and city centres. This will bring new people into the area and deliver new economic growth.

"This is a big opportunity for the Preston and South Ribble area, with benefits for the whole county. We're determined to work hard to make this happen."

Councillor John Swindells, Deputy Leader of Preston City Council, said: “City Deal is making great progress and this is another important milestone for Preston. We’re talking a major new junction on the motorway which will make a huge difference to the area. The Preston Western Distributor road is a massive improvement in Preston’s transport infrastructure and the catalyst for unlocking new homes and business growth across Preston. We’re looking forward to the plans taking shape.”

The proposed Preston Western Distributor is a 4.3km dual carriageway linking the A583 at Lea to the M55 at Bartle with a new motorway junction.

The East West Link Road would be a 3.4km long single carriageway road linking Lightfoot Lane to the Preston Western Distributor, with segregated foot and cycle ways along its full length.

As part of the Preston Western Distributor, a single carriageway link road will be created to Cottam Way. The Cottam Link Road will join the Preston Western Distributor just north of the Lancaster Canal.
The City Deal is an agreement between the Lancashire Enterprise Partnership (LEP) and Preston City Council, South Ribble Borough Council and Lancashire County Council, along with central government and the Homes and Communities Agency (HCA).

It will help to deliver new infrastructure, new homes and more jobs over the next ten years. City Deal will help to create more than 20,000 new private sector jobs and see over 17,000 new homes built across the area, along with new school places, open green spaces and new health provision to cater for the growing population.

For more information visit www.lancashirelep.co.uk/city-deal, email [email protected] or follow the work on twitter @LancsCityDeal.

The scheme will provide direct access to the housing areas in North West Preston proposed in the adopted Central Lancashire Core Strategy and Preston Local Plan 2012-2026 and detailed in the Preston City Council's published North West Preston Masterplan.