THE planned expansion of one of Basingstoke’s busiest roundabouts has finished three months ahead of schedule.

Hampshire County Council’s £4 million scheme to widen the A30 Winchester Road roundabout, in a bid to ease congestion, was completed on Monday, March 27.

The speedy work has been welcomed by the county council’s executive member for environment and transport, Cllr Rob Humby.

He said: “These improvements will have a considerable positive impact - by improving journey times, road safety, and access for local developments such as the proposed 3,400 new homes and local services at the Manydown site.

“We have worked very hard to complete this major scheme ahead of programme and ensure disruption was kept to a minimum.

“This project has involved the County Council investing money early on in preparation work, to reduce the duration of the roadworks and minimise disruption by keeping traffic lanes open during peak times.”

As well as increasing the number of lanes on the roundabout and the approach roads, along with the installation of traffic lights, drainage has been upgraded to reduce the risk of localised flooding.

The final part of the work to install the traffic lights on the roundabout took place last week, with the whole project finishing three months ahead of its original completion date as well as being well within its budget.

The £4 million scheme received a significant level of funding from the Enterprise M3 Local Enterprise Partnership (LEP) to support their wider growth plan.

Geoff French, CBE, Chair of Enterprise M3 LEP said: “We are really pleased to see this project delivered ahead of schedule and within budget.

“The scheme supports a key aspect of our strategy for growth, which includes safeguarding Basingstoke’s economic vibrancy."