WORKMEN are laying the final stretches of a long-awaited bypass scheme near Melksham.

Just over 1km of the 4.5km-long Semington bypass is left to build and engineers hope the road will be open early in the new year.

Work began on the project in February, and it will carry around 20,000 vehicles each day, taking traffic away from the busy A350 through Semington.

Costs have steadily risen and the scheme is over budget by more than £740,000, but project manager Peter Hanson, of Mouchel Parkman, said this was due to cash needed to solve unstable ground conditions.

Tonnes of hard core had to be laid on the site to provide solid foundations for the £12m road.

Mr Hanson said: "It's things like this which have slowed us up but, weather permitting, we hope the road will be open at the end of February."

Vandals and thieves have posed other problems at the site but security patrols have helped keep trespassers away.

"Every day there are new challenges but there have been few frustrations," said Mr Hanson.

Thousands of pounds has also been spent on landscaping and protecting wildlife. Fences to stop deer running into the carriageway have been put up and steps have been taken to protect badgers and a family of great crested newts.

Cash has also been spent on providing cycleways and pedestrian-friendly paths.

But one of the biggest costs, so far, has been the construction of a £1m aqueduct to carry the Kennet and Avon Canal over the bypass.

It is the first aqueduct to be built on the waterway since it opened in 1810.

Engineers had their work

cut out negotiating a way over

it but Mr Hanson is pleased with, what he describes as, the project's 'best feature'.

He said: "Just having a bypass with a bog standard structure is a bit boring but having something like this makes it more interesting from my point of view."

Mr Hanson, who has been working on similar projects around the county for the last 30 years, including bypasses in Codford and Chippenham, said Semington's bypass would rank among his favourites.

He said: "It is a very good scheme. This one is going to be one of the best I've been involved with it will be very satisfying when the job is done."

Residents have been kept informed about latest developments and schoolchildren and bypass campaigners have been invited to site visits.

Now plans are being made for an opening ceremony, which could be attended by a senior government minister.