The new £7m Beccles Southern Relief Road will officially open later this month.

The project, which had been predicted to take just under a year to be completed, has been finished with the road almost ready to open to the public.

The road will be officially opened on Tuesday, September 25, by the deputy lord lieutenant of Suffolk, Robert Rous, and will become part of the A145, with the existing A145 running through the centre of Beccles due to be downgraded.

Events are being planned for the weekend before the official opening of the road, including a fun run along the route and a family cycle event down the new cycle path.

Once open, the road will link the A145 London Road to Ellough, to the south east of the town, providing faster access to Beccles Business Park and the Great Yarmouth and Lowestoft Enterprise areas.

Together with the B1127 Copland Way, the relief road will form a southern and eastern bypass of Beccles.

Peter Aldous, MP for Waveney, said: “A tremendous amount of work has taken place despite a cold and wet winter, and a very hot summer.

“The road will be built on time and within budget. It will make a tremendous difference to traffic flows in Beccles and improve the link to Ellough Industrial area, which is so important to the local economy.“

Mark Bee, leader of Waveney District Council and Suffolk County councillor for Beccles, said: “I am delighted that at long last the Beccles Southern Relief Road, now to be the A145, is a reality, after over 20 years campaigning for it.

“We must ensure that the, signage, weight restrictions and speed limits are in place to ensure that Beccles enjoys the maximum benefit of this new road, and that traffic flow is improved by a review of the traffic priorities in the town centre.”

The majority of the funding – £5m – has been provided by the New Anglia Local Enterprise Partnership (LEP) who in turn received the money as part of a growth deal with the central government.

The remaining £2m was provided by Suffolk County Council.

Funding was awarded in 2014 after a business case showed the new road will support further development of the Ellough Industrial Estate.