More than 50 Maidstone businesses attended a briefing this morning to find out how the planned improvements to the the town’s bridge gyratory system might affect them.

KCC’s project manager Russell Boorman said he understood they had probably come with some trepidation and concerns about how traffic disruption might affect their trade, but he assured them that everything possible was being done to ensure “Maidstone stays open for business as usual.”

The £5.74m project is due to start on Monday, June 6, with completion scheduled for November.

Jackson Civil Engineering has been appointed to carry out the construction.

Mr Boorman said the civil engineering work was relatively simple, the difficulty lay in the site’s location, right in the town centre.

He assured the town that there would be no lane closures during the peak traffic periods, defined as 7.30am to 9.30am, and 4pm to 6pm.

At other times there might be lane closures, but the road would not be completely closed to traffic except for some overnight working, between 8pm and 5am.

In answer to questions from the floor, Mr Boorman assured his audience that he was aware of issues such as the need for school buses to pass unhindered, especially during the school exam period, and he believed there should be no extra delays.

During the construction he promised there would be no other major roadworks permitted anywhere in the Maidstone borough, and KCC would also be liaising with other boroughs, such as Tonbridge and Malling, to make sure there weren’t delays on key routes into town such as Hermitage Lane.

Anyone with any queries can contact the public liaison officer, Rebecca Edwards, on 07970 358089.