Borough Life Winter 2006: Westwood go! Road scheme on schedule
Just over 18 months since work started on the Westwood link road, there’s light at the end of the tunnel with the news that the scheme is on target and due for completion in the spring.
At just under half a kilometre, the £7.5m road linking Chapel Lane and Poolstock is one of the shortest pieces of major highway ever built in Wigan — but its impact on the town’s economic future will be considerable.
The road opens up the Westwood Park employment site for major development.
With one of the borough’s heaviest traffic flows – 25,000 vehicles each day – the challenge has been to keep the roads moving whilst re-engineering the River Douglas down an 85m concrete culvert.
Ten miles of cables and pipelines, including some delicate fibre optics, have had to be intricately fed underground.
The overall aim is to bring jobs and investment to Wigan. Cllr John O’Neill, cabinet member for regeneration, said: “With a modern carriageway for Westwood Park, we’re looking forward to bringing increased employment and new opportunities to our town.”