A WOMAN, who was considering moving house to get away from the noise of the motorway, has succeeded in her campaign to get part of the M6 re-surfaced.

Debbie Woodhouse, of Langden Crescent, Bamber Bridge, organised a petition last summer after reaching 'the end of her tether' with the constant roar of traffic near her home.

She said: "I moved here 15 years ago and have always really enjoyed the neighbourhood apart from the increasing level of noise behind my house.

"Now I can't even talk to my neighbours -- we have to shout at each other over the fences -- if we want to sit outside in the summer we can't hear each other. It's got worse over the years."

In a bid to get the noise level reduced Debbie contacted county councillor Tom Sharratt -- who gave her petition forms -- and took to the streets with her 13-year-old daughter Stacey and friend Sammy, 12, to rally support for her campaign.

This week they learned their perserverance had paid off -- the M6 near Preston is to be laid with a low-noise surface, from junction 28, at Leyland, to junction 30, at Bamber Bridge. The new road, which will take six months to complete at a cost of five million pounds, also makes safer driving for motorists as it produces less water spray when it rains.

Debbie said: "There is only my garden and an embankment between my house and the motorway so you could hear the noise through the double glazing especially when the wind is blowing in the direction of my house."

A spokesman for the Highways Agency said: "We are delighted to say that we are able to help this lady -- the new surface will reduce the noise to the equivalent of half the traffic flow.

"The concept of motorways are now nearly 30 years old -- Preston bypass being one of the first stretches to be built in the country and over time, as traffic has increased, so has the noise levels."

Work will begin on the stretch near Debbie's home next month.

Now Coun Sharratt has calling for the same surfacing from the Bamber Bridge junction to junction 31 at Samlesbury, but work is unlikely to start for several years.

"We were definitely thinking of moving house and so were some of my neighbours."