New road plans for Blackburn Town Centre

Work to draw up plans for a major new £2.9million road scheme in Blackburn Town centre to ease traffic flow is set to start next year.

The project will make it easier for cars to get to Whalley Range and Northgate/Sudell Cross in Blackburn.

The scheme will involve two years of roadworks on Barbara Castle Way but aims to boost and extend the existing town centre.

The government’s £2million contribution to the ‘Fabric Borders’ project has been supported by Blackburn with Darwen Borough Council, funding the remaining £900,000.

The full design will be prepared next year ready for work to start in 2020/21.

It involves new junctions on Barbara Castle Way with Randall Street and Victoria Street and the reopening of the full length of Northgate, currently closed between Duke Street and Sudell Cross, to through traffic in both directions.

Cllr Phil Riley, borough regeneration boss, said:

This is great news.

It will widen the town centre and stop Barbara Castle Way acting as a barrier to its extension.

The scheme will bring Whalley Range with its range of fashion, textile and clothes shops into the main retail area, thus the ‘Fabric Borders’ title which is also a nod to Blackburn’s textile heritage.

It will also improve access to and from King George’s Hall and Northgate, where we have a £3million heritage lottery improvement project. We are committed to doing what we can to keep disruptions to a minimum when the works start.