St Helens Borough Council’s Cabinet has secured more than £8m in funding to improve the borough’s highways network throughout 2020/2021.
Made up from a variety of different funding pots from the Liverpool City Region Combined Authority and the Department of Transport, the money – which totals £8.865m – will go some way in supporting the council as it recovers from COVID-19, and will facilitate maintenance and improvement to the highway infrastructure – including the delivery of sustainable transport measures such as walking and cycling.
St Helens Borough Council is responsible for more than 480 miles of adopted highway and is committed to investing resources into this important asset. These funds will tackle potholes and resurfacing problems – and build on the success of the council’s major projects such as the Better Lighting in Sustainable Streets (BLISS) scheme that improves the energy efficiency of street lighting; and junction improvement schemes like Windle Island and Pewfall Junction in Haydock to improve safety for all road users.
The funding is not just about the benefit of car users – it will also see improvements to walking and cycling routes, helping to address air quality issues and help to improve resident’s health. The next few months will see improvements coming forward for the Lea Green area by linking the train station with dedicated pedestrian and cycling routes to St Helens Town Centre and nearby residential, leisure and employment areas.
Welcoming the funding, Councillor Andy Bowden, Cabinet Member for Environment and Transport, said: “Residents and businesses of our borough want to see improvements made to our road network, which is why we are committed to creating a well-connected, safe and accessible transport and digital networks across the borough, whether you drive, cycle or walk.
“We need to make sure our road network is maintained to a high standard, not just for today’s world, but tomorrow’s too. That’s why we’ve invested and will continue to invest in significant improvements which fall in line with our priorities of creating safe and strong communities for residents; supporting a strong, diverse and well-connected local economy; and creating green, thriving and vibrant place to be proud of.
“This funding will help us achieve this.”
