A long-running road improvement scheme on one of Somerset’s main roads will finally be completed at the end of July, the county council has promised.

Work began back in early February on the construction of a new supporting wall near the A30 at Haselbury Plucknett near Crewkerne, with the road being initially closed for three weeks and then traffic lights being in operation.

The scheme was originally due to be completed within 13 weeks, but was extended after the damage to the original wall was found to be worse than anticipated.

Somerset County Council has now confirmed that the scheme is now making “excellent progress” and the road will be reopened by the end of July.

A spokesman said: “Work should be complete by the end of July, but this is dependent on weather and no further complications arising, so in common with any relatively difficult scheme it’s not possible to give an exact date at this point.

“This particular scheme has faced a number of unavoidable complications. The contractor has been extremely flexible and innovative in dealing with challenges.

“At this stage it’s not possible to say how or if this will impact on the overall cost.”

After detailed excavation had begun on site, the retaining wall was found to have deteriorated “far worse than expected”, meaning it took longer to secure.

Because the wall is on private land, there was limited scope to discover this until the work programme had officially commenced.

Storm Eunice and Storm Franklin caused further hold-ups at the beginning of the work period, before the workforce uncovered “previously uncharted pipes, ducts and cables” underground which required liaison with BT and Wessex Water to prevent local services from being disrupted.

A council spokesman said: “A further challenge was presented by a significant area of older masonry from a much earlier wall under the surface, which meant equipment on site was unable to penetrate the ground.

“This caused a further delay until sufficiently powerful machinery could be organised and brought on site.

“Although the initial phase of work was carried out under road closure, the vast majority of the scheme is being delivered under temporary lights, with convoy movements for HGV vehicles to minimise disruption for local residents and businesses.

“This has meant restrictions on the size of the works area and consequently a longer time-frame to deliver the scheme.”

The scheme has so far cost the council £283,000 to undertake.

The council has confirmed that businesses in Crewkerne would not be compensated for any loss of trade which had occurred during the roadworks.

The spokesman said: “We as the highways authority are charged with the responsibility for the upkeep and maintenance of roads, and as such have a legal duty to undertake works when necessary.

“There is no statutory provision for compensation for businesses affected by roadworks.”

Councillors Mike Hewitson and Oliver Patrick – whose Coker division includes this stretch of the A30 – have been lobbying for the work to be accelerated over the past few months, being in “constant dialogue” with the council’s highways officers.

In their June newsletter to their constituents, they confirmed that a further set of roadworks on the A30 between Crewkerne and Yeovil had been pushed back in light of the Haselbury Plucknett disruption.

They said: “It’s good news for local businesses as the scheduled A30 closure in West Coker has been postponed until next summer.”