A key route in and out of a Suffolk coastal town will be closed for eight weeks from today. 

Candlet Road, just off the A14 in Felixstowe, will be shut to traffic until November 10 while Suffolk Highways carries out works. 

The closure is needed to create a roundabout which will serve a Bloor Homes development of 368 homes and will act as an entrance to the 2,000-home North Felixstowe Garden Neighbourhood.

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The closure was expected to take place earlier this year, however, Suffolk County Council delayed the works until after the summer period. 

In March, Felixstowe mayor Seamus Bennett described the original closure plan as "awful" and feared there would be congestion as tourists arrived for the summer.

During the closure, traffic will have to use alternative routes, potentially along the Dock Spur road and Langer Road or through the Trimley villages.

Although the county council's highways department facilitates the works, the plans were approved as part of planning permission for the development by East Suffolk Council.

A spokesman from Bloor Homes said: “While the planned road closure and diversion will go ahead during this timeframe, there will be an emergency access route which will be available at all times, should the Dock Spur Road be closed, upon the request of the Highway Authority. We are seeking to complete the roadworks with as little disruption as possible in order to reopen the road as soon as we are able to.”

Bloor Homes has confirmed the diversion route will direct traffic to via A14, Port of Felixstowe Road, Walton Avenue, Beach Station Road, Langer Road, Garrison Lane, Candlet Road, and vice versa.