BIG city red lines to stop 'dangerous' parking and speeding traffic on a multi-million pound highway are to be made permanent.

The system was temporarily introduced on the £4.8 million Furthergate Link Road in 2017 but council bosses have now approved proposals to make the measure permanent.

It covers sections of the A678 on Copy Nook, Bottomgate and Furthergate widened under the £40million Pennine Reach Scheme to speed buses between Hyndburn, Blackburn and Darwen.

The red route, which uses powers so far only implemented in London, Birmingham and Edinburgh, stretches from Larkhill and the Eanam Roundabout to Accrington Road and Gorse Street with stopping and loading prohibited except in a few marked and signed bays with time restrictions.

It is enforced by CCTV cameras, police and council officers and covers both sides and central ‘reservation’ areas, with fines of £70 reduced to £35 if paid within 14 days.

The Furthergate Link Road from the M65 Junction 6 is one of two key gateways in Blackburn town centre.

When the new scheme was announced in March 2017, some local businesses reacted angrily to the crackdown labelling the road ‘a nightmare’.

Borough regeneration boss, Cllr Phil Riley, said the scheme was initially introduced after the opening of the widened alignment on Copy Nook, Bottomgate and Furthergate, with shops on Copy Nook blighted by parking issues.

He added: "Red routes were introduced to allow for reducing congestion and controlling traffic on bus corridors in London. These measures eventually spread to the West Midlands and have now been included in the general traffic regulations released in 2016.

"The scheme covers the main route from Larkhill, Eanam Roundabout through to Accrington Road and Gorse Street.

"The scheme has been operating since October 2017 and we are now in a position to make the order permanent."

READ > Murderer who killed own daughter after getting her pregnant should 'rot in prison' – son

As part of a legal requirement, the council's director of HR, legal and governance, David Fairclough, will now advertise that the order is to be made permanent at a cost of £2,000.

Vehicles displaying a blue badge can still stop on the red route to enable a disabled passenger to get into or out of the vehicle.