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Skelmersdale is a New Town , by far the largest town in the district of West Lancashire . As of 2004, it had a population of 41,700 {Link without Title} . ORIGIN The origins of the town can be traced back to the Domesday Book , with a reference to Skjalmar's Dale. The old Skelmersdale was a mining town. The town is known as 'Skem' by the locals. The River Tawd flows through Skelmersdale into a country park. The main country park is at Ashurst Beacon, a hillside location that is also residence to a Golf Club. NEW TOWN The modern town was designed to alleviate the population pressure on nearby Liverpool and surrounding areas. It became a designated New Town in 1961, the first in the second wave of designations. The layout of the town is unique for the oversized roundabouts (the largest of which is "Half Mile Island") and the distinct lack of road crossings - there are no traffic lights whatsoever. Skelmersdale's road system has improved with better signage, although visitors still frequently get lost. Skelmersdale endured mixed economic fortunes during the last three decades of the 20th century. With the economic downturn in the late 1970s large industrial employers left town en masse, resulting in an increase in crime, drug abuse and poverty. Today, however, West Lancashire has one of the lowest recorded crime rates in England. Furthermore, 90% of the district's planned economic expansion is to be targeted at the town, no doubt a consequence of its road infrastructure - no point in the town is more than five minutes away from the motorway system. 2006 is to see a redevelopment drive for the town coordinated through English Partnerships and the Northwest Regional Development Agency and publically headed by the designer Wayne Hemingway . Among current proposals is a new central focus for the entertainment and commerce for the town in the evening {Link without Title} . ECONOMY Although consisting predominantly of housing estates, Skelmersdale's industry includes the Co-operative Bank (Skelmersdale's single largest employer), the cosmetic manufacturer Constance Carroll, Potato snacks from Walkers Crisps and many others. Skelmersdale houses the corporate base and a distribution centre for Matalan , the discount Clothing and homewares store. SPORTS The town's football team, Skelmersdale United plays in the North West Counties Football League and was a FA Vase winner in 1971. One of its former players was Steve Heighway , who went on to play for Liverpool F.C. for many years. TRANSPORT Road The M58 Motorway runs beside Skelmersdale from the nearby M6 Motorway to the Switch Island interchange. It is said that this motorway is one of the most under-used motorways in the UK. The A570 and the A577 both provide connections. Skelmersdale is renowned for having the largest Roundabout in Europe with a diameter of half a mile. Rail The nearest railway station is previously connected Skelmersdale to Ormskirk and Rainford Junction. The rebuilding of a dedicated connection linking the town to Up Holland has been proposed. EXTERNAL LINKS
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