AN angry councillor has pledged to step up the fight against a ‘road to chaos’.

Conservative Neil Slater is furious Blackburn after Darwen Borough’s planning committee approved a new £3.2million link road through his Marsh House ward.

Now he plans to appeal to the funding body the Lancashire Enterprise Partnership (LEP) to veto the grant of £2.5million needed for the scheme.

The Darwen East Distributor Road, between Marsh House Lane and Ivinson Road, aims to serve 350 new homes on Bailey’s Field.

Cllr Slater attended Thursday’s committee to say that the road, branded ‘a motorway through the green heart of Darwen’ by local MP Jake Berry, should not go ahead now the proposed developer of the housing estate had pulled out.

He told councillors: “It will be a road to chaos through my ward and will be dangerous especially in winter. Now there is no housing developer for this site, it would be a huge waste of public money.”

Cllr Slater said the council’s own rules required a full masterplan for the area, including a viable housing scheme, in place before planning permission for the road could be granted.

Labour councillors said the road was vital to future homes development and denied claims it would become a ‘rat run’ for traffic dodging the A666 Bolton Road into Blackburn.

Cllr Jamie Groves, borough lead member for regeneration, said: “This will be a 30mph road which is six metres wide, narrower than a normal residential road, so to describe it as a ‘motorway’ is ridiculous. This road has been on the agenda for many years and is needed to develop housing in the area.”

The committee heard that planning approval was needed this month for the LEP approve the £2.5 million grant in November for a start in January.

Cllr Slater said: “It would be a grant for a road which is not needed to serve houses which will never be built on land where eight former mines make development impossible.”

Planning committee chairman Dave Smith said: “There are developers interested in the Bailey’s Field site. Building this road will encourage them to come forward with proposals for much-needed new homes.”

Cllr David Foster, leader of the borough council Liberal Democrat group and councillor for Whitehall ward, said he would support.

Both Mr Berry and the LEP declined to comment.