THREE local environmental groups are combining their efforts to persuade Lancashire County Council to look to the future.

Councillors discussed which, if any, of four road schemes should be contained in the Local Transport Plan to be submitted to Government in July.

But whilst other County Councils are consulting the public on their preferred proposals, Lancashire has put off the decision until a special meeting on May 10. The four schemes still under consideration by the Council are the Heysham-M6 Link, A56 Village Bypasses (Pendle), Penwortham Bypass and Ormskirk Bypass.

Campaigners say that none of the road schemes is an effective solution and all are environmentally very damaging. They see the postponed decision as a simple one - that all four road schemes should be abandoned. John Nairne of Lancashire CPRE explained "These plans for new road developments really are blasts from the past which should have been scrapped long ago. You simply can't justify destroying some of the county's most valued countryside for a few years worth of traffic relief."

Matt Gordon of Transport 2000 East Lancashire continued "Road-building is in direct competition with improving road safety and developing new systems such as rapid transit. The County Council should be prioritising expenditure which will help those without cars, improve public transport and encourage people to walk or cycle more."

Frank Kennedy of Friends of the Earth concluded "When Lancashire County Council consulted the public on its draft plan last year, road building was by far the least popular priority for spending money. It would be an appalling display of arrogance if they were to ignore this and choose to ask for tens of millions of public money for their own favourite road scheme."