BRADFORD Council will be bringing in outside help to progress with a number of major regeneration and infrastructure projects.

The transformation of Bradford Interchange, a park and ride in the South of Bradford and a new segregated cycleway on Thornton Road were all included in a funding announcement from government earlier this year.

The Transforming Cities Fund - a £317 million fund awarded to West Yorkshire, will pay for a number of projects to improve cities including Bradford.

Nationally the fund was set up to "provide investment in walking, cycling and public transport focusing on supporting inter-city connectivity making it quicker and easier for people to get around."

At a meeting on Tuesday, Councillors will hear that external expertise will be needed to meet the "challenging" timescale for the project.

Headline projects in Bradford include the pedestrianisation of Hall Ings and "sustainable transport" measures in the surrounding city centre, the redevelopment of the entrance to Bradford Interchange, the park and ride scheme, which will include an "express busway" on Manchester Road transporting people from a car park near the M606, and the Thornton Road cycleway.

What is the "Transforming Cities Fund" and what will it mean for Bradford?

The funding requires much of the work will need to be completed by March 2023.

The meeting of Bradford Council's Regeneration and Environment Scrutiny Committee will be told that in order to meet this deadline, the Council will have to bring in outside resources to develop the business cases for the schemes.

Members will be told that existing regeneration projects being carried out by the Council means that staff will be unable to fully plan for these new schemes.

The contracts for this outside help will cost over £2 million - which means the issue needs to come before the committee before it can progress.

A report to the committee says: "Achieving the deadline date of ‘opening’ of these schemes by March 2023 is exceedingly challenging and belies some of the inherent complexity associated with delivering schemes of this size which must be overcome.

"Delivery of the Transforming Cities Fund projects (including option appraisal, design development, business case management, procurement, governance and management support during the construction phase) using the Council’s own resources cannot currently be delivered due to other capital programmes currently in development."

West Yorkshire Combined Authority - the collection of Councils that was awarded the Transforming Cities Fund cash, has already granted approval of funding of £7.5m for the development of outline business cases for the Bradford by March 2021.

Members will be told the Council plans to use the Crown Commercial Services’ Construction Works and Associated Services Framework - a Government body that provides commercial services to the public sector, to develop the schemes.

The Committee meets online at 5.30pm on Tuesday.