The completion of the much-anticipated A585 Windy Harbour to Skippool bypass has been marked with a celebration event with the various partners.

MPs, civic dignitaries and invited guests joined the team behind the scheme, built around the village of Little Singleton, which is aimed at reducing congestion, improving safety and removing a major bottleneck between the M55 junction at Kirkham and Fleetwood. The multi-million pound project was part-opened before Christmas before being fully opened in March this year.

With final upgrades to the network complete, aside from some seasonal planting in winter, now was deemed the ideal time to celebrate the major achievement with the local community, with a special recption held at Singleton Lodge in Singleton today (Friday).

Celebrations were held at Singleton Lodge to mark the official opening of the A585 Windy Harbour to Skippool bypass | National World Resell

placeholder image — Celebrations were held at Singleton Lodge to mark the official opening of the A585 Windy Harbour to Skippool bypass | National World Resell

Road users say the new road has improved aspects of the route between the M55 and Fleetwood, although some say there are still issues.

One contentious aspect has been the use of traffic lights to manage traffic, with some road users believing that roundabouts would not have slowed traffic to the same extent.

Nevertheless, there is delight in many quarters about the completed project.

What they say

National Highways Project Manager Tom Peckitt said: “It has been a privilege to deliver this scheme and work with the local community.

“It’s the culmination of a lot of hard work which is already resulting in vastly improved journeys.

“The three miles of new road added around the village of Little Singleton has brought much-needed capacity to deliver smoother, safer and more reliable journeys for everyone.”

The completion of the A585 Windy Harbour to Skippool bypass has been celebrated with an event at Singleton Lodge | National World Resell

National Highways partnered with Kier to deliver the scheme. Jon Hornsby, Project Director at Kier said: “This has been a great scheme to deliver.

“We have worked with no less than 50 local-subcontractors, and all those involved in the project, including our teams and our supply chain partners have showcased a high level of technical expertise throughout and can be proud of their achievement.”

The project has been built with environmental merit in mind.

To that effect, efforts have been made to boost biodiversity with 72,000 trees and shrubs planted, with more due to come, plus pond, woodland and grassland areas enriched or newly introduced.

Further environmentally friendly improvements include safe crossings for wildlife beneath the bypass and creating bird mitigation areas for special species.

MP for Blackpool North and Fleetwood Lorraine Beavers said: “Congratulations to the team who have delivered this bypass. It is already bringing much needed relief from congestion with all the benefits that brings for the local community, plus the wider benefits for our region and our local economy.”

MP for Fylde Andrew Snowden added: “This landmark occasion is a tremendous achievement and congratulations to all those involved. This scheme has seen millions of pounds invested in reducing congestion, speeding up journey times, and boosting jobs and the economy for Fylde.”

And MP for Lancaster and Wyre Cat Smith added: “It’s fantastic news that the A585 bypass project is complete. Residents have been patient throughout the long duration of this major infrastructure project, and I hope now that the benefits of easing of congestion, improved transportation and better accessibility to the wider region will be felt by all.”

Key achievements delivered throughout the course of construction include: