A MULTI-MILLION pound scheme to ease one of the Hampshire’s biggest bottlenecks has been unveiled.

A HAMPSHIRE road which should be the gateway to Southampton but instead has become one of the most notorious bottlenecks in the county.

The M271 at Redbridge Roundabout regularly resembles a car park during rush hour as cars clog up the main route into the city. It has also become an accident blackspot.

Now, after a public consultation, Highways England have devised a £25m plan to allow traffic to flow more freely in and out of the city.

Under the plans, a new left-turn slip lane will enable motorway traffic heading for the city centre to reach the A33 without stopping at the roundabout.

The southern side of the roundabout will be widened to create four lanes to allow traffic from the M271 and Totton bypass to be separated.

The footbridge will also be replaced with a wider one to accommodate pedestrians and cyclists while the northern subway by the A35 will be upgraded. The southern subway will be closed and replaced with a new Toucan crossing on the south east of the roundabout.

A spokesperson for Highways England said: “The Port of Southampton is the second busiest in the country and is very important to Southampton and the UK economy.“Substantial levels of freight and cruise passengers travel in and out every day on the motorway network.

“Maintaining a well-functioning transport network is vital to the competitiveness of the port and the continued development and success of Southampton.”

City transport boss Councillor Jacqui Rayment, cabinet member for Transport and Environment on Southampton City Council, said: “I am pleased that Highways England have modified their plans and residents views have been taken into account.

We welcome investment into our roads network and any scheme to improve the roads even though it causes disruption and delays will be all worthwhile in the end.”

ABP director Alastair Welch added: “Southampton is Britain’s biggest export port, handling £40 billion worth of exports each year and supporting 15,000 UK jobs. Any measure that helps it run smoothly is a win not only for the city but for the UK economy as well.”

However, Eugene McManus, chairman of Redbridge Residents’ Association, said the proposals are of “no benefit to the residents of Redbridge”.

He added: “There is a lot of traffic already in the area making it a risk for the residents of Redbridge particularly when they pull out of Gower Road onto the M271.”

Work on the new scheme is expected to begin in March 2020.