Work has started on the £8m link road at Stallingborough to open up development land west of Grimsby.

Work has now started on site to construct the £8m link road at Stallingborough which will open up prime development land west of Grimsby and improve infrastructure to support existing businesses.

The road is part funded by the Greater Lincolnshire Local Enterprise Partnership, which has contributed £2m towards the scheme.

As part of the £42m South Humber Industrial Investment Programme (SHIIP), the project will upgrade 1.5km of road and build 1km of completely new road.

The new stretch of road will link Moody Lane with Hobson Way ion Stallingborough, reducing travel times to the port of Immingham and Enterprise Zones and improving traffic flows.

The existing private road between Moody Lane and where the Courtaulds gatehouse currently stands will be improved and enhanced and the two combined to create the new road.

A shared footway and cycleway and other new highways infrastructure, such as streetlighting, will also be included as part of the works.

Colas Siac Ltd have been awarded the contract to carry out the works and are hoping to employ two new apprentices on the project.

During the construction period there will be some disruption to local businesses and the cycle path will be closed for a part of the programme. The team is working with businesses to minimise this disruption and keep them informed throughout the project, which will take 16 months to complete.

Ursula Lidbetter MBE, Chair of the Greater Lincolnshire LEP, commented: “We are delighted to be supporting such a key piece of infrastructure in the South Humber area, enabling improved access to a strategic Enterprise Zone site with consent for 98,000 sqm of employment development and contributing to local economic growth and productivity.”

Minister for Local Growth Jake Berry said: “The Government is committed to boosting economic growth across the whole of the Midlands Engine building a country that works for everyone.

“This £2m investment from the Local Growth Fund will help create new jobs by opening up access to a new Enterprise Zone and improving links between communities in the South Humber region.

“Supporting businesses by transforming transport infrastructure is at the heart of our modern Industrial Strategy - and this project is an example of it in action.”

Cllr Peter Wheatley, Cabinet member for regeneration, said: “People will have heard and read a lot about this groundbreaking South Humber programme, but now they will start to see more and more exciting development  projects happening.

“This link road will give an alternative route to the already very busy A180 and really change the way that traffic moves between our local ports of Grimsby and Immingham.

“Our area already hosts some vast and incredible industries that are here to take advantage of our links to the ports and the rest of the world, and this project is about unlocking the potential for more businesses to come to our area and take up these opportunities.

“In short, it means more businesses, more jobs, and a boost to our local economy.”