LANCASHIRE County Council is set to approve £1.27 million to repair roads in Pendle, at its Cabinet Meeting on Thursday, 8th March. This comes after the Conservatives invested an additional £5 million pounds in its Highways Budget this year. The has now been a £10 million increase in Highways spending since the Conservatives took control in May 2017. It is worth noting that both the Labour and the Lib Dems groups opposed this extra expenditure. The previous Labour administration, which was propped up by the Lib Dems and ran from 2013–2017, consistently underfunded road investment in Pendle. Therefore, this extra £1.27 million of funding is a step towards reversing that underinvestment which we have all seen have an impact this year and to help to effect proper repairs of Pendle’s roads.
County Councillor Jenny Purcell commented, “We are poised to see an unprecedented investment in Pendle’s rural roads in a bid to bring them back up to standard. I would like to thank the County Council for listening. This is not just filling in potholes; this is the proper renewal these roads need. I will now push for a resurfacing timetable, so we know exactly when these works will be carried out and I will, of course, continue to fight Pendle’s corner at County Hall and push for more repairs on our roads.”
The schemes set to be approved are:
• £145,965.46 for surface dressing of Barrowford Road from Whalley Road to Fir Trees Lane
• £65, 703.87 for surface dressing of Colne Road from Accornlee Hall Farm to Kelbrook roundabout
• £70,108.04 for surface dressing Gisburn Road from Blacko Bar Road to Barnoldswick Road
• £199,396.61 for surface dressing Keighley Road from Spring Grove to the County Boundary
• £48,731.72 for surface dressing Skipton Old Road from Cockhill Lane to Shaw Clough Farm
• £155,206.24 for resurfacing Skipton Old Road from Shaw Clough Farm to the County Boundary
• £11,529.37 for surface dressing the full length of Greenberfield Lane
• £18,495.07 for footway resurfacing of Haverholt Close, from Harrison Drive to number 38
• £19,103.18 for footway resurfacing of Gordon Street, from Norfolk Street to Howard Street
• £180,159.53 for footway resurfacing of Venables Avenue, from Castle Road to Byron Road
• £117,547.24 for footway resurfacing of Reedyford Road, from Regent Street to the Canal Bridge
• £10,605 for Reedyford Footbridge for inspection
• £60,000 for culvert repairs and drainage improvements on Skipton Road/Victoria Road, Earby
• £85,400 for culvert headwall reconstruction and installation of trashscreens on Higham Hall Road and Barrowford Road, Higham
• £20,834.13 for 2 layer inlay on Penrith Crescent
• £22,063.86 for 2 layer inlay on Penrith Road
• £30,840.87 for inlay on Humphrey Street, from Banks Street to Chapel Street
• £14,760.43 for inlay on Mayville Road, from Hardy Street to Woodville Road
These works will be in addition to ongoing pothole repairs across the Borough of which 1,300 have already been carried out since May.
County Councillor Joe Cooney commented, “I have been working with the County Council to try and secure more investment in Pendle’s roads and I’m pleased with the start that we have made. Over 1,300 defects in our roads have been fixed in less than a year and now we’re set to see over £1.2 million worth of funding to be spent in our Borough. Once again, it’s the Conservatives that are committed to improving Pendle, but, we won’t rest on our laurels - we will continue to fight for more investment in our road network.”