A MAJOR road in Dudley is to get a £5m makeover which bosses say will reduce delays at the congestion hotspot.

Pensnett High Street is an important borough route which serves Pensnett Trading Estate, the largest secured trading estate in Europe.

It is estimated the road has to cope with around 30,000 vehicles every day.

Councillor Khurshid Ahmed, Dudley cabinet member for transportation said: "These major improvements to Pensnett High Street will help to reduce delays and congestion, improve road safety, air quality, pedestrian links and safety as well as making sure that bus services are more reliable.

“The work is expected to start in January 2017 and while this may seem a way off at the moment, what we want to do is share the more finalised version of the plans with those who live, work or shop in the area so that views can be obtained.

“We will liaise with the community, motorists, shops and businesses in the lead up to 2017 so that preparations for starting on site can begin.”

Improvements will include new traffic lights at the High Street/Tansey Green Road junction and High Street/High Oak junction, road widening along the High Street to allow for the introduction of two lanes at the new traffic lights and new pedestrian crossing facilities at High Oak and Tansey Green Road.

Bradley Street, Birds Meadow and Tansey Green Road will be made left turn only and High Oak will be right turn only, to improve visibility and safety for motorists and pedestrians.

A consultation on the project will run from Monday September 22 to Friday October 17.

Council officers will be on hand to show off plans and discuss the scheme with members of the public at The Dell Stadium, Bryce Road, Brierley Hill from 5pm to 8pm on Tuesday September 23 and Wednesday September 24.

Views can also be captured by completing the short questionnaire which will be posted to properties and households or by visiting www.dudley.gov.uk/resident/parking-roads/ where an online questionnaire is available.

Alternatively, call Dudley Council Plus on 0300 555 2345 or email pensnettimprovements@dudley.gov.uk

At the end of the consultation, a final scheme will be produced so that planning for an expected start date of January 2017 can begin.

The work is expected to take 12 months to complete.