A county councillor has thanked residents for putting up with 'painful' council works in Diss, and said that around £1m has been spent on the town this year.

County councillor for Diss and Roydon Keith Kiddie said at this week's town council that projects including a £133,551 cycle lane on Victoria Road, and £299,149 traffic lights at Frenze Hall Lane showed the County Council are continuing to invest in the town's infrastructure.

He said: 'The long suffering people of Diss, I know you've put up with a huge amount of road works and I have pushed to get schemes done and through over this last financial year. I thought it would be interesting to see how much we've actually spent in Diss. I've put some rough costings down and the total we are spending on various schemes is just a nat's crotchet under £900,000. However these are the major schemes and do not include pothole repair, top dressing, gully work and tree work.

'Believe me I do understand just how painful it's been, but I would rather see the money being spent here early because to be honest who knows what is going to happen next year, so let's spend the money early, take the pain up front.'

Works to install a pedestrian and cycle crossing opposite Diss Leisure Centre on Victoria Road caused major disruption throughout November, with congestion seeing drivers sometimes take more than 40 minutes to drive through the town.

Mr Kiddie also spoke about future projects for the town. He said: 'I've already had some discussion with the county engineer and we've got a couple of schemes already on the stocks for next year, a £40,000 footpath on Denmark Street, and £30,000 drainage on Victoria Road to name but two. But then we have to see how the money goes.

'All I can say folks is thanks for your perseverance but I'm sure you all appreciate it's better to have the money up front because sometimes there's no money when you really need it.'

'I will continue to push for the Vinces Road and Station link to be progressed as fast as possible, but at present it is undergoing the process of compulsory purchase, which will take as long as it takes. However it has been earmarked for funding, and should be shovel ready once the legal hurdles are overcome. The estimated cost of the scheme is £1m.'