Mor than £6 million has been earmarked for transport improvements as part of a 10,000-home development.

The South East England Regional Assembly’s transport board has agreed to the investment to open up the Shoreham harbour site for redevelopment.

Previous attempts at largescale building programmes at the port have floundered because of the poor transport network.

However, the assembly can now bid for the cash from the Government’s community infrastructure fund because the area has been named as a new “Growth Point”.

Transport board chairman Nick Skellett said: “The money will help ensure more sustainable development in Shoreham and surrounding areas as investment in public transport, walking and cycling will help cut congestion.

“Providing the right infrastructure, in the right place, at the right time, is absolutely key for the future.”

About £1 million would be spent on pedestrian and cycling routes around the harbour.

More than £5 million has also been set aside for extensions into the port of the Sussex Coastal Expressway project, a planned fast, bus-based system from Portsmouth to Brighton, and Brighton and Hove’s proposed Rapid Transit Scheme.