Congestion-busting upgrades in Burnley helping town grow

Four junctions along Active Way, at Church Street, Bank Top, Royal Road and Westgate have been upgraded with high-tech traffic lights.

Two pedestrian crossings in Active Way and one in Princess Way have also been modernised. One outside Burnley College is the first of its kind in Lancashire, featuring countdown timers telling people how long they have left to cross.

The work is part of the Burnley Pendle Hyndburn Growth Corridor programme which aims to cut congestion on the M65 and at key access points for business, skills and housing sites which are earmarked for future growth.

The £13m package extending from M65 Junction 7 at Accrington to Junction 13 at Barrowford is part of the £250m Growth Deal secured from government by the Lancashire Enterprise Partnership, and includes contributions from Lancashire County Council and Burnley, Pendle and Hyndburn councils.

Graham Cowley, chair of the Lancashire Enterprise Partnership's Growth Deal Management Board, said: "The Growth Deal is a once-in-a-generation opportunity to invest in ensuring our transport infrastructure has the capacity to support future economic growth.

"The aim of these schemes in Burnley is to improve access and reduce delay from the motorway through the Westgate and Active Way corridor to ensure that companies looking to invest in this area have the confidence that their goods and employees will be able to move efficiently.

County Coun. Aidy Riggott, Lancashire County Council lead member for economic development and cultural services, said: "These latest improvements to junctions in the centre of Burnley will aid movement around town centre in general, but with a particular focus on improving access to sites such as Burnley College, the UCLan campus, and the Heasondford Industrial Estate.

"In and around Burnley earlier schemes have already resulted in improvements at M65 junction 10, Gannow Top and Barrack roundabouts, and the Trafalgar Street/Westgate junction."

Burnley Council leader Mark Townsend added: "I welcome this investment into improving Burnley's road system. The new traffic light systems will help ease the flow of traffic through the town centre, cutting journey times and reducing pollution. We're working hard to attract more people to come to Burnley and it's important that we continue to make sure our roads can cope with increasing traffic."

The pedestrian crossing with the countdown timer aims to improve safety by alerting students, who may be walking together in large groups and not giving their full attention to the road, when the lights are due to change.

The growth corridor schemes have also included improvements to cycling and pedestrian facilities to support people in considering alternatives to using their car for shorter journeys.

The improvements to traffic light junctions on Active Way marks the completion of 11 of the 16 pieces of work in the overall Growth Corridor programme which represent a £2.3m investment in Burnley.