Work is due to begin in the autumn on a £1.5m roundabout to improve safety at a notorious accident blackspot. The project to build a roundabout to replace the existing A140 Pulham crossroads is due to begin in September and it is hoped it will be completed by the end of the financial year in March 2009.

Work is due to begin in the autumn on a £1.5m roundabout to improve safety at a notorious accident blackspot.

The project to build a roundabout to replace the existing A140 Pulham crossroads is due to begin in September and it is hoped it will be completed by the end of the financial year in March 2009.

Earlier this year Norfolk County Council agreed funding for the roundabout at its budget fixing meeting.

The work will be carried out by the county council and is largely being funded through its local transport plan.

Villagers have complained that they have to play “Russian roulette” each time they use the treacherous junction which is designated a high-risk accident site.

The scheme originally planned to coincide with the building of the Long Stratton bypass and improvements to Hempnall crossroads, which has yet to win government funding, has been given top priority for 2008/2009 by county highways officials who have spent about £40,000 on design work.

Developing the roundabout will involve the purchase of land in Pulham Market and adjoining Tivetshall to enable the widening and realignment of the existing road layout.

The proposals include a new southbound layby to accommodate a bus stop.

Beverley Spratt, county councillor for Tivetshall, has been working on the project for four years and yesterday said he was delighted the project is set to get off the ground in September.

“It has been a long fight to get this work done,” he said. “In four years there has been a lot of work in the background, firstly to get the project approved, then we had to get it into the capital budget, which was very difficult because a lot of councillors were bidding for road works to be done all over Norfolk.

“The really hard work was done over Christmas and I am delighted that work is due to start soon. There have been a number of serious accidents at the crossroads over the years. The improvements will be a huge benefit to the people of south Norfolk and all the motorists using the A140.”

Mr Spratt said that people from the surrounding parishes were invited to a meeting at Tivetshall Village Hall on July 8 where the plans will be discussed in more detail. The meeting, which is open to the public, starts at 7.30pm.

A Norfolk County Council spokesman said the project is currently programmed to start in September, but there are still some issues to be resolved, including land acquisition and construction costs.

The spokesman added: “Detailed design has been continuing. Once a start date is confirmed, the county council will be publicising this locally and seeking views on the best traffic management arrangements.”