AN EMBARGO on roadworks in Purbeck has been lifted after the busy summer period.

Planned engineering on carriageways will soon begin again after Dorset Council lifted a temporary suspension for roads affected by the breakdown of the Sandbanks Ferry.

All works were halted to alleviate pressure on the network.

Councillor Ray Bryan, cabinet member for highways, said: "With the summer peak season now over, and with traffic counts showing figures average for this time of year, councillors and highway chiefs have agreed to lift the works embargo to ensure projects can get underway.

"We know that there will still be some additional traffic on these routes in to and out of Purbeck, but we must get back to business as usual to ensure that vital utility work and highway schemes can get under way.”

On Monday, October 7, highway work to build a cycle link in Wareham will centre on Worgret Roundabout.

For two weeks, all approaches at the roundabout will be reduced to one lane so that dropped kerbs can be installed to improve crossing points for cyclists and pedestrians.

Although work started on September 2, up to now, the project has not interfered with traffic flow.

The scheme is widening the existing pavement into a shared use, off-road cycleway and footway from Worgret Roundabout, along the A351 Wareham Bypass, to Saxon Roundabout, to provide a valuable sustainable transport link between the new housing development and the railway station.

The ferry is currently out of action after developing a mechanical fault earlier this year.

It was initially withdrawn from service on July 12, but owners say it's not expected to be back in operation until the end of October as it needs a specialist part which has been ordered from Sweden.

In a statement released on the ferry's website, a spokesperson said: "We are doing everything in our power to return the ferry to normal service as soon as we can."