Work is set to start on the new section of the A417 in April.

Drivers in the area have got used to the preliminary works and overnight closures over the last few months, as part of the £460m Missing Link project.

National Highways has built a new site entrance close to the Air Balloon roundabout and has widened a section of the carriageway on the A417 to keep traffic moving more smoothly during the next phase of construction.

The next phase is when construction work on the Missing Link really begins. National Highways will start building the new section of the A417 to the south and east of the Air Balloon roundabout.

This is described as 'offline' work, as it takes place away from the existing road network.

When completed in spring 2027, the new 3.4 mile stretch of road will provide a dual carriageway all the way from the M5 at Brockworth to the M4 at Swindon, ridding Gloucestershire of a notorious congestion and accident hotspot.

National Highways is also working with Gloucestershire County Council and the Gloucestershire Local Access Forum, to improve connectivity and accessibility of the Public Rights of Way (PRoW) near the A417.

The Connecting Parishes project, funded by National Highways' Users and Communities fund, aims to reconnect PRoW between neighbouring parishes and the Cotswolds Way, which were previously severed by the Strategic Road Network.