MONTH-long roadworks have got underway this week connected with construction work at Dorset County Hospital in Dorchester.
The Dorchester site has been earmarked for funding from the government's New Hospital Programme which will expand the hospital's services.
This includes the building of a new Emergency Department and Critical Care Unit being built on the former site of the Damers School building, which has already been demolished.
The project is costing around £80 million and DCH is trying to raise a further £2.5 million to fund enhanced facilities to make patient care and staff wellbeing even better.
Temporary traffic lights, switched on at the beginning of the week, are in operation as part of Damers Road needs to be closed.
A new access road for visitors and patients is being created near the old entrance of the Damers School site. This will then provide ambulances with a separate, dedicated access route, as the existing access from Damers Road will not be affected for them.
Visitors to the hospital may wish to use Bridport Road instead while works are taking place, it is suggested.
A spokesperson for DCH said: "If you are coming to our hospital over the next few weeks, please be aware that there will be roadworks on Damers Road as part of the construction of our new Emergency Department and Critical Care Unit.
"A new access road is being created with an entrance and exit junction, just down from the old Damers School site entrance.
"Our contractor Tilbury Douglas will need to close part of Damers Road and put a traffic light system in place to allow vehicles to continue to travel along the road.
"They will also need to temporarily close off some of the on-street parking in the area too. This is to allow traffic to continue to flow along Damers Road and make sure blue light vehicles can easily access the existing Emergency Department.
"The works started on January 8 and will last for up to six weeks. Visitors wishing to arrive via the main hospital entrance may wish to travel along Bridport Road instead.
"We have tried our best to plan these works so that they cause minimal disruption, including starting after the festive period. We apologise for any inconvenience and thank you for your patience."
The helicopter landing site has also temporarily moved to the Army Reserve Centre on Poundbury Road to allow the work and construction to take place.
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