CAMPAIGNERS fighting for a new M6 bypass - instead of an upgraded motorway junction at Lymm - have stepped up their fight.

Supporters of a new A556 (M) relief road, linking the M6 and M56 at Mere, claim the alternative solution would be to construct a high level bridge just south of Lymm near junction 20.

With the Government expected to make a final ruling later this year on which option they prefer, people living near the, currently congested, A556 are making their presence known.

Last weekend they leafleted hundreds of football fans travelling to the Manchester Utd-Arsenal FA cup tie and have now launched their own website - www.manchestersweakestlink.com

Campaign spokesperson Linda Lord said: "It was a great success - we had quite a few volunteers offering personal and monetary help.

"People were saying that they were glad something was going to be done."

A Junction 20 improvements package would also involve widening the motorway between Lymm and Knutsford, say the group, and the demolition of five properties near Lymm interchange.

Motorists forced to travel further north along the M6, to reach the M56, would still leave the motorway earlier, at junction 19 or junction 18, barely easing traffic snarl-ups, they argue.

Each day, around 60,000 vehicles are estimated to use the route, which residents say has an appalling safety record.

Only last week the A556 Chester Road saw another fatality, when a motorist failed to negotiate a right hand bend, south of the A50 junction, and hit a tree.

Even minor incidents, such as a lorry shedding its load, brings the area to a standstill, it is claimed.

The relief road option would also be cheaper, according to Mere neighbours, coming in at £116 million, compared to between £130 million and £160 million, depending on the junction 20 scheme's requirements.

Environmentalists are aghast at the prospect of cutting a new swathe through the Cheshire countryside for the A556 (M).

The Highways Agency and North West Development Agency say they would both favour the link road alternative.