THE news that highways bosses have delayed work on the next stage of the roadworks at the Kennington roundabout will concern drivers.

This major road scheme to turn the roundabout into a hamburger design will eventually bring improvements, as similar schemes in Oxford have shown.

But it will seem like a long wait for drivers, who frequently find they are spending longer and longer commuting to and from work.

It’s a stark choice for drivers – seek a lengthy diversion that involves staring at the bumper of another vehicle on Botley Road or join the traffic queues on the A34.

According to the county council there may be a glimmer of hope because the plan is still to complete the work on schedule by the end of November.

But it now seems a distinct possibility that the scheme could over-run, unless contractors have been smart enough to factor in enough time to cope with the discovery of underground cables.

Other major schemes, including work on Frideswide Square, need to be completed, so the highways team is under pressure to get this roundabout work finished.

Time is money and the continuation of delays can only be bad for business.

Let’s hope the contractors manage to sort out the cables so that drivers are not repeatedly tangled up in congestion.