Preston's £20m Old Tram Bridge replacement confirmed in Levelling Up mixed bag

Lancashire has scooped £200m of government cash to fund a plethora of regeneration schemes across the county. Six local authorities and their proposed projects have been awarded money from the second round of the nationwide Levelling Up Fund.

Preston’s historic old tram bridge will finally be replaced after the city was awarded the full £20m it requested from the Levelling Up Fund. The historic crossing has been the focus of a long-running campaign calling for its restoration after the structure closed almost four years ago when an inspection found that it was at risk of sudden collapse.

Additionally, the bid set out plans to create cycling corridors, running from east to west and north to south across the city. The aim of those schemes is to establish good connections to bus and train services, employment sites and residential areas for those who travel on two wheels – and to tempt more people to do so.

“Even more money going into our parks is something we have been seeking for some time. It’s going to improve [those] parks in some of the more deprived areas of Preston, so people have opportunities for sport, participation and enjoying the natural environment,” Cllr Brown said. Like most of the successful bidders, Preston will be expected by the government to complete all of its schemes by March 2025. There is no such pressure on the city’s neighbours in Chorley and South Ribble – both of whom lost out on their bids.

Meanwhile, the council’s Bengal Street depot on the A6 approach to the town centre was to be flattened and replaced with a mixed 62-dwelling development of apartments and ‘colony housing’ – with separate upstairs and downstairs residences. The bid will also set out plans for a major upgrade to the United Reformed Church’s Hollinshead Centre complex – located to the rear of the church itself – to facilitate the community work which is already carried out there.

“That’s not to belittle anybody else’s projects, but I do find it a bit odd that [places like Chorley] who have a proven track record of delivery and who use less money to achieve more, are at times ignored. It’s all done for political reasons, in my view – it’s skewed towards the [government’s] political targets in 18 months or two years’ time. In the meantime, we’ll carry on levelling ourselves up.

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