Six months of roadworks between Preston and Longridge will cause 'inevitable disruption' warn County Council

New roadworks to install nearly three miles of high-voltage electricity supply will begin on the outskirts of Longridge next week, with work expected to continue until April 2027.

Starting on Monday (October 19), the 26 weeks of works will see electricity infrastructure installed for the new Barratt David Wilson Homes housing development in Whittingham Road and Cumeragh Lane.

Contractor PN Daly has been appointed to carry out the installation, which will be completed in eight phases across Longridge, Whittingham and Cumeragh.

The work comes amid existing roadworks in Longridge Road and Bluebell Way, which began at the start of October and saw delays of more than an hour with motorists complaining of the lights not being manually controlled.

Lancashire County Council acknowledged concerns about further disruption for motorists and residents, but said “a project of this scale will inevitably cause some disruption”.

It said alternative routes were considered during the planning process, but Electricity North West advised that Fell Brow in Longridge was the only viable connection point with sufficient capacity, and that the chosen route was the shortest option that could be delivered.

Lancashire County Council said access to properties will be maintained throughout the work and residents will be given advance notice where temporary road closures, traffic management measures or parking restrictions are required.

The current programme is expected to run into April 2027, meaning the work could continue for around six months, with a pause from Christmas Eve into January.

Council warns of ‘inevitable disruption’

Councillor Warren Goldsworthy, the Council's cabinet member for highways and transport, said: “I completely understand why people are concerned about further disruption in this area, particularly with works already taking place on Longridge Road and Bluebell Way.

“The latest work involves installing more than 4km of new electricity infrastructure through Longridge, Whittingham and Cumeragh to provide a new electricity supply for the Whittingham Road and Cumeragh Lane housing development.

“These are not county council works, but we’ve been closely involved in the planning and coordination for more than a year. We recognise these essential works will add to disruption in the area, and we’ve been working closely with everyone involved to coordinate the different schemes and minimise their combined impact on the road network as far as possible.

“Unfortunately, a project of this scale will inevitably cause some disruption. The work has been carefully phased to reduce the impact and we’ll continue to monitor how the traffic management is working throughout, working with those involved to make adjustments where we believe they can help keep traffic moving.”