'Vital' money to ease congestion gets green light

Work is expected to include improving key road junctions to prevent town centre congestion

Ambitious plans to tackle town centre congestion in Blackpool have been given the green light by the government.

The £17m Town Centre Access Scheme had faced an uncertain future despite being allocated £15.3m of Levelling Up funding from the previous government.

Blackpool Council chiefs had warned the work could not be completed by the deadline of March 2026, which is when the money had to be spent by, putting the investment in jeopardy.

But Blackpool South MP Chris Webb has now received confirmation from Alex Norris, minister for local growth, saying the funding had been included in the Budget.

Environmental improvements

Mr Webb said: “I have been lobbying hard to secure this money which is vital for the transformation of the town centre so I am delighted we are able to confirm it.

“Our existing infrastructure does not take into account the level of traffic we are seeing now, and with an additional 4,000 civil servants coming into the town centre we need to make these improvements.

“The scheme will also improve pedestrian access to support increasing footfall in the town centre which is essential for our high streets.”

Blackpool Council has agreed to contribute £1.7m to the project, representing 10% of the total cost.

Detailed plans have yet to be drawn up, but work is expected to include improving key road junctions to prevent town centre congestion and encouraging more environmentally friendly travel such as using buses, footpaths and cycleways.

It will also support regeneration including the new civil service hub due to open next year on King Street, further office development proposed on Talbot Road and the multiversity education campus earmarked for a site off Cookson Street.

The project is also aimed at creating environmental improvements in terms of air quality and to support the introduction of electric buses.