If you thought things couldn't get worse . . . even more roadworks hit Preston's Ringway

Another section of Ringway was due to be narrowed by a lane closure, not far from the work which has been causing traffic headaches for the past month.

This time repair work to fibre broadband is set to cause problems along a 77-metre section of the westbound carriageway from the junction with Carlisle Street, in front of the B&M Homestore.

The work is scheduled to take up to 11 days – unlike the reconstruction of Ringway 100-metres further along, between North Road and Corporation Street, which is set to take more than a year.

The latest roadworks will add to the already lengthy delays being caused to traffic in the centre of the city.

Motorists have had to endure tailbacks in both directions since the £14.7m Ringway/Friargate remodelling project began exactly four weeks ago. That scheme is likely to go on until the end of March 2023.

Drivers have slammed the delays which are said to be adding at least 10 minutes to journeys through the city.

Cabbies say passenger fares have risen because of the time spent caught up in the jams. And the delays have also affected bus services which use Ringway.

With sections of Marsh Lane and Corporation Street also seeing lane closures for roadworks in recent weeks, one county councillor has urged County Hall bosses to open the controversial Fishergate bus lane to relieve the bottlenecks.

The idea has knocked back by the highways authority which said it had considered the measure, but had decided it was “not an option at the moment.”