A NEW video showcases a council's work to transform Crewe.

Cheshire East Council has released a fly-through video (watch it above) featuring many of the major successes to have already been realised in the town, including the Lifestyle Centre and University Technical College.

It also reveals what the town will look like when plans currently in the pipeline come to fruition as part of an £180 million of investment into the town's regeneration.

These include:

• the new Market Hall
• Ly2 improvement scheme
• Royal Arcade redevelopment
• History Centre
• and Crewe Hub Station

Cllr Nick Mannion, Cheshire East Council Cabinet member for environment and regeneration said: "For much of 2020 the council's overriding focus has been dealing with the impacts of the Covid-19 pandemic. But it is great news that while faced with difficult circumstances, much has still been achieved to push ahead with Crewe's transformation.

"The video captures those achievements and showcases the exciting future ahead, as we strive to see Crewe become a town that is accessible to all, with new business, employment opportunities and new housing, and one that has a vibrant day and night-time economy.

"It is this journey that we want to also share with the wider region and those further afield, as we put Crewe firmly on the map and continue to attract inward investment and economic opportunities."

The council views Crewe as a town of national strategic significance, ideally positioned in regard to its connectivity links and economic opportunity, which has benefited already from the completion of the University Technical College in 2017 and Crewe Lifestyle Centre's opening in 2016.

A number of successful cultural events have also been delivered, working with partners such as Crewe Town Council and the Lyceum Theatre.

While there has been significant investment made on the town's highway infrastructure, including the Crewe Green Roundabout and Sydney Road Bridge improvement schemes.

Next year, work is due to start on the North West Crewe Package to improve the local road network around Leighton Hospital, while plans for dualling the A500 up to Junction 16 are also underway.

Spring will see the reopening of the Market Hall with a new commercial operator following a programme of refurbishment that will see it transformed into a vibrant hub.

And work will also continue on the demolition of the vacant shops at the Royal Arcade, with the whole site due to be cleared by spring next year.

The Royal Arcade scheme, will include a new bus station, a 400-space multi-storey car park and leisure, restaurant and retail units – anchored by a new state-of-the-art cinema.

The town centre regeneration programme – which includes improvements to the public realm – plays a central role in kick-starting preparations to make Crewe 'HS2 Ready'.

Cllr Craig Browne, deputy leader of Cheshire East Council, said: "The arrival of HS2 to Crewe is an important component of delivering our future ambitions for Crewe and the surrounding area.

"Moving forward with a phased approach now presents the best option in the current climate. We are striving to create a hub station that is both fit for the future and for high speed rail – fit for HS2 – and also supports residents' local journeys around Crewe."

In January, overseen by Crewe Town Board, the council will submit its bid for up to £25m of funding from the government's Towns Fund.

The board – made up representatives from the community, public, private and voluntary sectors – has been reaching out to communities and leaders across the town to gather project proposals for the bid and find out what outcomes people want to see.

Meanwhile, the council is awaiting the outcome of its Future High Street Fund bid. The council submitted a bid to government for £20m of capital funding to support a number of projects.

Over the next year the council is also advancing plans for Crewe to become the location of a new state-of-the art history centre to co-host the region's archive, based in the town's former library.