MOTORISTS have been warned to expect delays ahead of work starting on one of the county's most congested routes.

The next phase of the highway improvements project along Vivary Way and North Valley Road in Colne is set to begin on Monday May 17 and aims to reduce congestion on the M65.

Work on the £1 million project began in September 2020, with the latest stage expected to take around 12 weeks.

Lancashire County Council director of highways and transport Phil Durnell said: "Vivary Way and North Valley Road is one of Lancashire's most congested routes and this project is essential to improve safety by reducing queues on the M65. The improvements to the junctions will also make a difference to people's journey times.

"We have carefully planned this project to minimise disruption as much as possible, however because the road is so busy the work will inevitably cause some delays, particularly during this phase over the next 12 weeks."

The new phase will include widening parts of Vivary Way, making changes to lane priorities, and improvements to signing, traffic signals and the road surface at a number of junctions.

Th county council has said that the work is crucial to reducing queues by making the junctions work more efficiently, and improving the way drivers are directed towards their destinations, however the authority has some short-term disruption will be unavoidable.

Some of the work will need daytime lane closures, and temporary lights will be operating at the Crown Way/Barrowford Road junction for around one week, with people travelling in this area being asked to expect delays particularly at peak times.

Mr Durnell said: "Much of the work will be done overnight, however there will also be some lane closures and temporary lights in operation during the day, and I'd ask people to be aware of this and leave extra time for their journeys.

"We're sorry for the inconvenience and grateful for people's patience while we make these vital improvements which will make a real difference once they are complete."

The scheme includes:

• Improvements to lane marking and signing on the Vivary Way approach to the M65 Colne roundabout to make it easier for drivers to choose the correct lane.

• Widening and the introduction of bollards on Vivary Way A6068 on the eastbound approach to the Crown Way/Barrowford Road junction to provide lane separation and reduce 'queue jumping'.

• Improvements to the traffic signals at the Crown Way/Barrowford Road junction to reduce delays.

• Widening of Vivary Way A6068 on the eastbound approach to the Vivary Way/North Valley Road roundabout to allow drivers to turn left onto Harrison Drive whilst vehicles are queuing in the ahead lane.

• Improvements to the traffic signals at the Vivary Way/North Valley Road roundabout to reduce delays.

• Introduction of a right turn 'pocket' to reduce the blocking of North Valley road from traffic waiting to enter the Sainsbury's petrol station.

• Improvements to 2 existing pedestrian crossings along Vivary Way and North Valley Road.

• Resurfacing parts of Vivary Way.