MOTORISTS are bracing themselves for significant delays in Poole, as the Hunger Hill roadworks are set to start in earnest on Monday.

The nine-month project, to completely redesign the junction at a cost of £11.7m, officially started last week.

However, this has mainly involved setting up a works compound at the site.

Speaking last week, Borough of Poole transport cabinet member Cllr Ian Potter said: "Work will ramp up over the course of this week, and more traffic management will likely be put in place next week as the workforce are operating in multiple areas to remove traffic islands and other activities.

"This will cause some unavoidable disruption to road users and we would encourage drivers to allow extra time for their journeys or use alternative routes where possible."

The project is supposed to support future development in Townside, where it is hoped 5,000 new homes will eventually be built.