WORK to finally give Blackburn’s £12million ‘Bridge to Nowhere’ a destination starts this week, seven years after its construction began.

Demolition of the Old Police House in King Street will finally get under way tomorrow.

It is the first stage of the long-awaited Freckleton Street link road completing the town centre orbital route..

When the 18th century building, also known as 53 King Street, Diamond Aquatics and Able Motors, are knocked down, the final phase of link road to the Wainwright Bridge can begin in the Spring.

The demolition work is expected to take six weeks.

A planning application for the road had been approved by the council but was referred to the Secretary for State for Communities and Local Government for listed building consent to demolish the old Police Station. The major new road costing £7 million will connect Montague Street and the Wainwright Bridge, started in 2006.

It will create a new gateway to the town centre and the council’s vision is for the area to be transformed into a mixed quarter of homes, businesses and public spaces.

Borough regeneration boss Maureen Bateson said: “The link road is an important part of the regeneration of the centre. It will open the whole area for potential development and will bring in much needed jobs.

“The new road will also improve the accessibility to Blackburn College, the new health centre and the town centre overall.”

The orbital route completion was delayed by a series of snags and resolved a year ago with a deal to buy and relocate Blackburn’s Spiritualist Church.

Construction work on the long-delayed final link will be completed in 2014.

The remaining stage of the orbital route will link Bolton Road and Preston Old Road, and go from Freckleton Street to Montague Street.

The deal will also allow the completion of the Knowledge Zone around the college/ university campus.