A controversial slip road which will take traffic destined for a dual-carriageway through a new-build estate will be completed before the end of the year, say developers.

A new on-slip for the A299 Thanet Way will pass through the Strode Farm estate in Herne Bay, closing the existing route which is currently accessed via the A291/A299 Canterbury Road roundabout.

The changes will see a new dual-carriageway run through the housing development, with a junction with traffic lights leading to the A299.

The project forms a small part of working being carried out by Countryside Homes and Places for People as both firms look to transform the area with a spine road and 800 homes as part of a £230 million scheme.

Despite the well-documented concerns of residents, who say it is “an accident waiting to happen”, developers and Kent County Council have ploughed on with the plans.

It is now set to be finished by the end of November, the developers confirmed to KentOnline.

The current slip road will be closed between October 9 and 11 as part of wider Chestfield Tunnel works, while the Canterbury Road roundabout will shut between November 11 and 16 to facilitate the transition.

KCC highways officers say the new slip-road will “retain a sufficient length to prevent any unacceptable safety impact from arising” while improving traffic flow.

But locals fear the new on-slip – which will be 120 metres shorter than the current one – could put drivers in danger as they join the dual-carriageway.

“This is an accident waiting to happen,” Graham Jones, of Canterbury Road, previously said in a letter to the city council.

“Vehicles, including cars and lorries, with slow acceleration will have to start from a standstill at the traffic lights, navigate a curved slip-road, and then wait for a gap to enter the carriageway safely.

“This will give rise to situations where considerably faster traffic will be met by slow-moving vehicles.

“It seems to me that attempting to join the westbound carriageway of the Thanet Way is going to be fraught with danger. There is an existing slip-road which serves the purpose adequately.”

The update comes as construction continues at Strode Farm. The 800 homes will be a mix of one and two-bedroom apartments and two, three and four-bedroom houses.

Bosses had hoped the first occupants would move in by the end of this year - but none of the properties are up for sale yet.

Central to the project - named Greenwood Gardens - is a new spine road linking the roundabout closest to Herne Bay cemetery with one recently built in Bullockstone Road, diverting motorists away from Herne village.

Planning conditions stipulate the spine road through the estate must be complete by the time the 410th house at Strode Farm is constructed and is being funded by section 106 contributions by developers.

Plans for the development were first submitted in 2015 by Hollamby Estates but were delayed by a number of legal challenges before outline permission was granted in May 2019.

It will be built in six phases, with the first underway and set to be completed by September next year.

It is hoped the overall scheme will be completed by July 2033.