A SOUTHAMPTON road is to be closed for two weeks to allow "well-needed" traffic lights to be installed.

Southampton City Council is to install part-time traffic signals at Woodmill Bridge as part of a queue management scheme.

The road will be closed for two weeks starting on January 6 and finishing on January 19 to fit new traffic lights and a puffin crossing in the area.

But traffic chiefs have warned that the closure could cause delays.

The plans follow a public consultation exercise at the end of last year.

The Daily Echo understands that residents of the area have been asking the City Council to install traffic lights for a number of years.

Woodmill Lane will be closed between Oliver Road and Manor Farm Road for two weeks.

A signed diversion route will be in place via Portswood Road, St Denys Road, Cobden Bridge and Manor Farm Road. Access to the Woodmill Activity Centre will be maintained throughout and will be via Wessex Lane in the first week and Manor Farm Road in the second.

Safe pedestrian and cyclist access around the works area will also be maintained.

Following completion of the works, the signals will undergo a period of testing before going live during the February school half term.

The work will also include a new puffin pedestrian crossing where the Riverside Park walk crosses Woodmill Lane, as well as maintenance work such as footway repairs and the cleaning of signs.

Once live, the new traffic signals will operate on a part-time basis, based on the flow of traffic through the junction.

It is anticipated that signals will be on during peak hours and switched off at night, when levels of traffic are lower.

During off-peak periods, the pedestrian crossing will still function but traffic will be expected to give and take as with the current arrangement.

Councillor Jacqui Rayment, deputy leader and cabinet member for place and transport, says: “We are aware that traffic levels at Woodmill Bridge continue to be a cause for concern for road users.

"We advise residents and commuters to prepare for delays and plan your journeys ahead while we carry out these works.

"We will be working weekdays and weekends between 7am and 5pm and doing all that we can to minimise disruption during this time.”