WORK is yet to start on installing Weymouth’s seafront lasers which were due to be finished this month.

This is the third time the Veils of Light scheme, a central part of the seafront regeneration project, has been delayed since it was unveiled in 2010.

But the borough insists the latest change of date is not a delay and that it is just the “time it takes for testing”.

As reported in the Echo in September, the lasers were due to be switched on this month but the council has revealed that installation work has not begun.

Councillor Howard Legg, briefholder for partnerships and special projects at Weymouth and Portland Borough Council, said: “The council will start work on the seafront lasers shortly.

“It will begin by digging large holes for the columns and the columns themselves will be put in before Easter.”

After a year of negotiations, the controversial plans were given final approval in September 2011.

Since then no less than four completion dates have been set for the £450,000 project.

Simon Williams, Head of Weymouth and Portland 2012 Operations, said: “There haven’t been any delays as such, it’s just taken time for fine tuning and testing.

“The current plan is to have the columns up by the end of March and the full lighting units fitted in April.”

The council had originally hoped the lasers would be in place by July last year but changes to the system pushed the date back to December.

This became February after councillors raised concerns about the column design and laser patterns. But now the council says it cannot confirm a completion date.

Coun Legg said: “The lights will go live around April time, but the date is yet to be confirmed.

“The ambition was always to have the lasers operational as soon as possible in 2012, but certainly in time for the summer and Games and this is still the case”

A spokesman for Parsons Brinckerhoff, which designed the lasers, said: “We are still 100 per cent on track for completion before the Games.

“This is something very unusual and high-tech and will be a really unique thing for Weymouth to have.”

When the project was first mooted it encountered objections. Pages were set up on Facebook objecting to the removal of the fairy lights.

Planners welcomed the new show, saying it would benefit the town and attract visitors.

the lighting SCHEME

In 2011 the council’s planning and traffic committee was asked to approve the lighting columns for the scheme.

The lasers themselves, which will be added later, do not need planning permission, but approval had to be sought from a number of bodies, including the Maritime Coastguard Agency.

The lasers will be computer-controlled and will operate during the evening but not throughout the night.

The patterns and times are still to be decided.

The Veils of Light project by Parsons Brinckerhoff, on behalf of Weymouth and Portland Borough Council, is part of a public art programme which encompasses the artwork on Littlemoor roundabout.

Funding for the £450,000 lighting scheme has come from the Arts Council and Regional Development Agency.