Lancashire four universities: Lancaster University, the University of Central Lancashire, Edge Hill University and the Lancaster campus of the University of Cumbria. Seven colleges offer higher education courses. The Lancashire economy relies strongly on the M6 motorway which runs from north to south, past Lancaster and Preston. The M55 connects Preston to Blackpool and is 11.5 miles (18.3 km) long. The M65 motorway from Colne, connects Burnley, Accrington, Blackburn to Preston. The M61 from Preston via Chorley and the M66 starting inside the county boundary near Edenfield, provide links between Lancashire and Manchester] and the trans-Pennine M62. The M58 crosses the
Accrington railway station uses a rainwater harvesting system, photovoltaic cells and solar hot water generation panels on the new tower. There is an hourly service from Accrington to (westbound) and Leeds/York (eastbound) on the Caldervale Line. This now also runs hourly on Sundays since the May 2009 timetable change, though it was suspended beyond Burnley (with a replacement bus connection to/from Hebden Bridge) due to ongoing engineering work at Holme Tunnel between November 2013 and late March 2014. These call at Blackburn and Preston westbound and Burnley Manchester Road, Hebden Bridge, Halifax, Bradford Interchange, New Pudsey and Leeds eastbound. Through trains to restarted