HIGHWAYS chiefs have unveiled more detail of a section of a planned ring road to be created around Blackburn town centre.

This will incorporate Barbara Castle Way, Preston New Road, Montague Street, the Darwen Street bridge area, Higher Audley and Copy Nook and take Traffic away from the town centre, with the aim being to make shopping areas more pedestrian-friendly.

Ultimately, council chiefs want the Boulevard and railway station areas to be better linked to the rest of the town centre and easier to reach for pedestrians.

Details of changes to traffic flows in the Copy Nook and Audley areas, as part of the ringroad project, have now been revealed. Traffic signals will be brought in at the Higher Audley Street, Lower Audley Street, Audley Range, Bennington Street junction.

The junction will also be widened to help it deal with the extra traffic currently travelling through the town centre.

A pelican crossing is also proposed on Higher Audley Street, near its junction with Cicely Lane, to make it easier for pedestrians to cross what will be a much busier road.

Traffic lights will also be fitted at the junctions of Copy Nook and Higher Audley Street, Higher Eanam and Higher Barn Street.

The new signals will detect the approach of buses, so they can be given priority.

The council's highways and transport committee meet to discuss the plans on Thursday, at 7pm.

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