There have been empty pledges and broken promises, but it seems there could be light at the end of the tunnel and a cure for the nightly traffic misery for thousands of workers.

The Messenger can reveal a £400,000 package of works, including road widening on the Medway City Estate, will be in place by the end of the year as council bosses finally believe they have turned the corner in the long-running saga of rush-hour hold-ups.

Following years of fudge and prevarication, the situation came to a head last autumn, when drivers were sometimes taking up to two hours just to negotiate their way off the estate. Businesses warned they could be forced to relocate, and many of the 5,000-plus workers said the situation had become intolerable.

After trailing a few temporary measures, the council is now about to make permanent changes. The first stage of phase one is to widen the approach to the main roundabout on and off the estate from Anthony’s Way.

The carriageway will be taken out to create a third full lane. There are also plans future to create a slip road – mirroring the way the A289 approaches the roundabout from the bridge.

At the same time, new traffic lights will be put up on the A289, just before the tunnel. Traffic from Gillingham and Chatham will be stopped for a few seconds just before entering the tunnel.

Cllr Phil Filmer, head of frontline services, said: “We trialled this, using lorries to control the flow of traffic from the tunnel when things were at their worst, and it did work. It gave motorists a chance to get off the estate. Motorists will not be stopped for long, but it will create little breaks in the traffic.

“However, we will be monitoring vehicles in the tunnel, to make sure people do not speed through when the road is clear.”

The Medway Messenger observed the lorries in action late last year, and a 20-second break in the traffic allowed around 100 cars off the business park. Almost 3,500 motorists drive on to the estate in morning rush hour. Work will begin at the end of September and finish at the end of November. It will be carried out overnight.

The cost is around £409,000 and the council has secured funding for the improvements from the government’s Local Growth Fund. But that money is only being handed over in instalments, over three years.

The first payment of £100,000 is going to be used for this first stage, but Cllr Filmer said: “We’re determined to carry out these improvements as soon as possible and get the estate moving again. The estate is a victim of its own success and we need to put some pride back into it.”

As a temporary measure, the council will top up the cash it has with money from the Local Transport Plan, while waiting for the rest of their LGF grant.

Other plans confirmed for early next year as part of phase one include installing CCTV cameras. Those working on the estate will be able to access the feed via the council’s website and check on any queues to plan when to leave work. Canal Road, which connects the A2 at Strood with the estate for buses, will be opened up for taxis to use as well.

Medway Council has secured a total of £2 million investment for the estate, with more ideas in the pipeline, including a bike-friendly bus so cyclists can come though the Medway Tunnel, a passenger ferry from Chatham, and another lane on the carriageway between Anthony’s Way and the Sans Pareil roundabout.