LEADING Pendle Liberals have expressed their dismay at the news of another delay to the start of building work on controversial by-pass routes.

They claim Labour-controlled Lancashire County Council has reneged on a promise made last autumn that it would submit a new planning application for the series of by-passes along the A56 between Colne and Thornton-in- Craven.

The county council announced last week that work would not begin until 2002 at the earliest.

"These people are unbelievable," said Pendle Council leader and Liberal county councillor Alan Davies.

"For over ten years they have made promise after promise and defaulted on every one.

"Meanwhile Colne gets more and more congested by the week."

West Craven Liberal David Whipp added: "This is very bad news for the communities along the A56."

He accused local Labour county councillors and the borough's Labour MP Gordon Prentice of sitting on the fence over the issue.

"Kelbrook, Sough and Earby are experiencing more and more traffic since the M65 to Preston opened," he added.

"The Labour rulers at County Hall are blaming the delay on the new Government waiting for the Transport White Paper this summer."

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