PREPARATIONS for the building of the Chadbury link road are being completed while Worcestershire County Council awaits confirmation of government funding.

Work on the new road, which will join the new A44 with Evesham bypass, is expected to begin in April and take less than a year.

The county has already been given £1 million by the government to kick-start the scheme and confirmation of a further £3 million is expected soon.

District and county councillor Clive Holt said: "We are waiting to hear from the minister whether we have got the other £3 million we need. It was supposed to be in early December but we have not heard anything yet."

He is optimistic that the government will recognise the importance of the proposed link road.

"We need to complete the improvements to the A44 - at the moment it seems to end up as a country lane causing a considerable bottleneck and problems for nearby residents," he said.

Project manager Andy Jenkins said construction work would probably begin in April next year. "The work will take about eight to ten months depending on the weather. We are hoping to get all the land by negotiation and agreement but we will use compulsory purchase orders if necessary."

Teams have already been on the site completing topographical surveys, ground investigations and design work.

Coun John Smith, a district and county councillor, said he was optimistic about the scheme. "I think the signs are fairly positive but until we have got the confirmation we are not going to start applauding."