LABOUR councillors will refuse to back down tonight over Lancashire's choice for its only major road scheme in the next five years, even though it means continued agony for traffic-plagued Pendle residents.

The county's highways bosses, with full support from the Labour administration, are pressing ahead with a major road scheme around Lancaster instead of the Pendle A56 bypass project, despite a planning inspector voicing doubts over the Lancaster route.

It means fed-up people living with traffic problems in the North Valley Road area of Colne and villages such as Foulridge, Kelbrook and Earby have no hope of a by-pass even being considered before 2006.

Pendle councillors will be urged tonight to back a motion by Liberal Democrat councillor David Whipp calling for a meeting with Transport Secretary John Prescott and a Ministerial visit to Pendle as part of the campaign to give the A56 bypass route the green light.

Coun Whipp said Lancashire should be able to put forward two major routes, the Lancaster road and the A56 scheme.

But Labour's vice-chairman of the county's highways committee, Colne Labour councillor Tim Ormrod, said the county council was pressing ahead with the Lancaster by-pass only, and any move to have two schemes could jeopardise them both.

Government rules say only one major road scheme from each county will be considered and Lancashire chose the Lancaster route as its first choice from four, including the A56 by-pass, last month

But Coun Ormrod said: "The inspector didn't reject the Lancaster scheme, he recommended it should not be included in Lancaster City Council's local plan because he felt work could not start before 2006. The county council's view is that it can and wants to see work start by 2004."