WORK on a relief road that will help to bring prosperity to Crewe is in top gear.

The£4m Crewe Green Link Road is a vital piece in a jigsaw designed to ease congestion on South Cheshire's traffic-clogged roads.

The road is part of an £8m scheme to take traffic away from Crewe town centre and surrounding villages, while ending the frustration and pollution caused by peak-time tailbacks.

Highways officials say the scheme, which can be seen in full swing at the Sydney Road-Hungerford Road junction, is on target to be completed by the autumn.

The new road will link the A500 Shavington bypass, which opened last May, with the A534 at the western end of the Haslington bypass.

The aim is to provide an alternative to the A534 Nantwich Road and access to develop sites at Basford Sidings and Crewe Business Park.

Regular newsletters are being sent out by developer Wrekin Construction keeping residents up-to-date with the works.

A spokesman said: 'The road is being constructed in three phases. The first will link the A534 Haslington bypass to A520 Weston Avenue and is programmed for completion in the autumn.

'Work has already started on Green-acres Bridge, which is to be the new bridge that crosses Valley Brook.

'Gas, telephone and electricity companies are progressing well with the diversions of their respective services around the A534 roundabout.

'The first phase is now well under way and progress is on time.'

Other projects include the A534 Nantwich Road revamp and 20mph speed limit works, which began in March and are expected to be complete by August.

New pavements, parking bays and street furniture will make it an attractive gateway to Crewe, while a lower speed limit on the main route and side streets will make it safer for pedestrians.

Work on a B&Q store on the former Chester Barrie site on the corner of Weston Road has triggered major improvements to the bottleneck Crewe Arms roundabout.

Cheshire County council drew up a legal agreement with the DIY chain to fund the work, which includes a bus and taxi lane on the A534 Crewe Road approach to the roundabout.

Access to the railway station will be targeted later this year with improvements round the Gateway junction, including traffic signals, cycle lanes and bus stops to encourage the use of public transport.

A study involving rail industry chiefs, local authorities, the North West Development AgencyandBritishAirways Authority has highlighted the need for better access to the station.

One suggestion is to move the bus stop from outside the Crewe Arms Hotel to Pedley Street.

Crewe and Nantwich Highways and Transportation Committee members back the scheme, which stops buses blocking the route as they stop to pick up and drop off passengers.