EAST LANCS is in line for a raft of public transport improvements and measures to make cycling and walking more attractive if a £50m bid to the government’s Levelling Up Fund is successful.

Further details have been revealed how the east of the county will fare if Lancashire County Council's sudmissions find favour in Whitehall.

If the money comes Lancashire’s way, Burnley, Rossendale, Hyndburn and Pendle will benefit from schemes which could include offering bus passengers real-time journey information while they are waiting at bus stops and the creation of new cycling routes.

District council awards have already seen Burnley receive £19.5m to upgrade the borough's Uclan campus and Pendle Council get £6.5m to overhaul Colne's indoor market and theatres.

The second round deadline is July 6 and County Hall wants to upgrade public transport facilities, promote cycling and walking and develop so-called 'liveable neighbourhoods'.

County Cllr Charlie Edwards, transport cabinet member, said 'liveable neighbourhoods' meant communities where people could “go to work, go to school, go to [their] GP [and] go to the shop[s] within a 20 minute or half-an-hour journey…where you maybe don’t need to use your car all the time [and] where you can hop onto a cycle path or you just live in a better-designed place”.

Plans are likely to include 115 priority bus stops, featuring up-to-the-minute info displays and audio announcements and 20 traffic light-controlled junctions giving buses 'intelligent priority' to help speed journeys.

Accrington railway station will also get an overhaul, with a new pedestrian bridge and lifts to both platforms.

And eight cycling and walking corridors will benefit from footpath widening, shared and segregated cycle and pedestrian provision, surface upgrades and new controlled crossing points.  Similar improvements will be made within eight neighbourhood areas.

Four new mobility hubs will manage shifts between public transport and walking and cycling within the same journey, with secure cycle storage, ticketing information, seating, shelter, lighting and CCTV. There is the potential to also include delivery lockers, cycle repair workshops and electric vehicle charging points.

The county council’s cabinet has committed £5m of match funding to create a £55m package – although attempts will be made to secure third party funding.