THE completion date for the £1.6m Beehive park and ride scheme will be February 16 - with buses expected to start operating from the site days later.

The complications that plagued the planning stages, when two separate inquiries were needed to determine the compulsory purchase order, have been absent from the construction phase.

The new roundabout, designed to improve road safety at what was previously a notorious accident black spot, is already in use.

Eric Teagle, head of forward planning at Salisbury District Council, said emphasis has been placed on landscaping the site to reduce its visual impact. More than 4,000 trees and shrubs will be planted, the majority in two large 'horns' shielding the 400-space car park from the views from Old Sarum.

The site will include CCTV cameras, a central waiting building with toilets and a permanently-manned observational floor.

Mr Teagle remains confident that the park and ride site, the first of four planned for the main arteries into Salisbury, will prove popular. "I think the biggest problem will be a lack of space," he said.

The council's original proposal was for 800 spaces, but this was rejected at the inquiry stage.

At present the council is actively negotiating the purchase of land at three other sites in Wilton, London Road and Petersfinger.