BELEAGUERED motorists and local businesses are bracing themselves for another twelve weeks of misery from roadworks along one of Purbeck’s busiest routes.

Engineers start digging up a section of the A351 Sandford Road on Monday, just months after a complete five-week closure on the same highway – that cost local firms thousands of pounds in lost revenue.

The latest work, carried out by Wessex Water, will see one lane closed at Sandford and affects all northbound Poole traffic.

Paul Cribb, of Sandford Road’s Cribb Tyre and Battery, said: “We’ve only just got through the last roadworks and these Wessex Water ones are for three months. A lot of our passing trade will be diverted away from us and, once again, we’ll get no compensation as this is described as essential maintenance.”

Engineers are laying a new sewer to protect nearby homes from the risk of flooding.

Wessex Water chiefs say they were unable to co-ordinate the work with Dorset County Council’s November re-surfacing project.

After the sewer work was announced, Jonathan Barker, Wessex Water’s project manager, said: “We are aware that the work in Sandford follows a recent five-week closure of the A351 between the Baker’s Arms and Holton Heath roundabouts for resurfacing and culvert repairs by the county council.

“While the county council and Wessex Water make efforts to co-ordinate works whenever possible in order to minimise disruption, on this occasion we were unable to carry out the work at the same time as it would have been detrimental to local businesses by effectively cutting off the Holton Heath trading estate.”

However, during November’s A351 closure, businesses based on Sandford Road – including J T Commercials Van and Truck Centre, and Cribb Tyre and Battery – both reported a 40 per cent drop in custom.

On that occasion traders slammed Dorset County Council for giving them just one week’s notice then offering no compensation. County officials defended their position by arguing they had a statutory duty to maintain the highway.

On the latest works, Wessex Water has urged anyone travelling towards Poole along the affected section of the A351 to allow extra time for their journeys..

While the A351 is closed to northbound Poole traffic, a diversion along the B3075 Morden Road, onto the A35, will be implemented.