MIDDLEWICH residents have been given an early Christmas present with council chiefs getting the ball rolling again on plans for a long-awaited bypass.

Council chiefs have drawn up a planning application for the £11m link road, to be submitted early next year.

And it could not come soon enough for residents and community leaders who believe the road will improve the area's economy and standard of living and have campaigned for years for the bypass to be completed.

Residents and businesses are being asked for their views on the project which would link Pochin Way and the A533 Booth Lane at Tetton Bridge.

A public exhibition is being staged at Middlewich Civic Hall next month and a decision is expected in the spring.

Middlewich is plagued by traffic congestion and can be gridlocked in the event of accidents on the M6.

Middlewich County Councillor Dave Sutton is happy the plans have gone in - but says the bypass should have been completed years ago. He now wants to ensure the county keeps its eye on the ball.

He said: 'This announcement is a great early Christmas present for local people because this planning application has been long-awaited and fills in the missing piece of the Middlewich eastern bypass, subject to funding.

'It will be very important in easing the town's traffic congestion and I would urge everyone to come along to the exhibition to make their views known.'

But he added: 'There should be a time limit on this project. It needs to be done but until now there hasn't seemed to be any urgency.'

The bypass would mean far fewer lorries on Lewin Street, which is well-known for its traffic problems - two heavy goods vehicles cannot pass one another without mounting the pavement. Lewin Street resident Keith Johnson said: 'Recently there has been more and more of the big lorries using Lewin Street. I can remember when I was little there was hardly any traffic and you could play on the street, but children can't do that now. It's constant traffic, night and day.'

He added: 'We can't park at the front of our house because there could be damage to car wing mirrors.

'When the big wagons go past the house shakes.'

Wife Pam, who works as a secretary in Wheelock, added: 'You just can't get across the road at rush hour - it's a nightmare. I can stand on the other side for 15 minutes waiting to get across.'

A public exhibition will be staged at Middlewich Civic Hall on Friday, January 21, and Saturday, January 22, about the proposals and county council engineers will be on hand to answer questions between 11am and 4.30pm on both days.

A decision is expected to be made in the spring.