WORKS on Blundell's Road in Tiverton are on schedule, according to Devon County Council.

The new road safety and traffic calming improvements are part of a £1.1 million scheme designed to reduce speeds on the road and to make it safer for pedestrians.

Blundell's Road was closed last week but a one-way traffic light system remains in place.

The council hope the first phase on the scheme will be finished in time for the return of the new school year. However, the footpaths outside the school will be temporarily laid with tarmac due to a delay in the delivery of the natural stone paving. The tarmacked footpaths will be re-laid with paving stone around one of the school holidays to avoid causing too much disruption.

Cllr Stuart Hughes, Devon County Council’s cabinet member for highway management, said: “The stone we ordered for the pavements has been delayed, which is very unfortunate and has meant that our programme for completion has had to be adjusted.

“We have worked hard to find good quality materials that will genuinely enhance the local area, so we have decided to lay a temporary surface and finish the works at a later date so we don’t disrupt the school.

“We were offered an alternative product instead but felt that this would be a compromise we were unwilling to make.”

Work in the Blundell’s Avenue and Tidcombe Lane junction areas will continue in September with temporary road closures and traffic controls when required.