A NEW multi-million pound link road near Pershore has been given the green light by council planners.

The 420-metre single carriageway link road would run between Wyre Road and B4083 and over the Worcester to Oxford railway line and is part of a county council project to tackle congestion in the town.

The application, by Worcestershire County Council, aims to improve links between Pershore town centre and the A44 as well as improve access to future housing developments in the area and offices on surrounding business parks.

Councillor Liz Tucker, who represents Pershore, said it had been a long journey to get approval for the link road during a meeting of the council’s planning committee on Tuesday (July 9).

The new link road would create a direct connection between Pershore Trading Estate, Keytec 7 Business Park, Keytec East Business Park and the A44. The work is expected to take around a year to complete.

The £12m new road and junction improvements are part of the county council’s ‘Pershore Infrastructure Improvement Project’ which has been developed in response to the increase in congestion and the number of new homes in Pershore and the surrounding area.

A number of road improvements, which would make the new link road the main north to south route between Pershore and the A44 rather than the A4104, was backed by county council planners in March.

Councillor Ken Pollock, cabinet member for economy and infrastructure, said: “This is an important project for the Pershore area and it’s great news that planning has been granted. The new link road will help to ease congestion and provide better links for public and local businesses.

“This project provides further evidence of the council’s commitment to relieving congestion and improving connectivity across the county.”

Bradley Thomas, leader of Wychavon District Council, said: “The construction of a northern link road is a significant step forward to alleviate congestion in Pershore. We are delighted to be supporting this project which is long-overdue and we are looking forward to work starting as soon as practically possible.”