A TEMPORARY traffic order has come into force legalising the closure of part of Whitedown Lane in Alton to facilitate the replacement of the historic Butts Bridge.

The multi-million pound infrastructure project will see the demolition of the Victorian bridge, on Whitedown Lane, to be replaced by a new, wider girder bridge to serve the Watercress Line and enable traffic to travel with greater ease across that end of town.

It comes as part of the highway scheme to accommodate the hybrid South Alton Plan - a 500-home development split between Borovere Farm on the A339 Selborne Road and the former Treloar Hospital site off Chawton Park Road,

While the order covers a period of 18 months, according to contractor Knights Brown, the bridge works are due to start on January 25, with completion expected within seven months, taking it to July 2019.

The traffic order will also legalise the traffic management arrangements necessary to facilitate the necessary diversion route:

* Southbound diversion: will see southbound traffic using the A339 diverted via Chawton Park Road and Northfield Lane to the A31. This will be particularly relevant for those wishing to access Alton Community Hospital, Chawton Park Surgery and Alton Sports Centre.

Two-way traffic will continue on Chawton Park Road from the junction with the Whitedown Lane (A339) to a point adjacent to Jubilee playing fields, where it will become one way as far as Northfield Lane.

Parking will be prohibited on both sides to facilitate the free flow of traffic. It will be ‘right turn only’ from the opposite end of Chawton Park Road into Northfield Lane.

Northfield Lane will essentially be one-way to the A31. Northfield Lane and Chawton Park Farm residents will be granted access under traffic light controls. Parking will be prohibited and indicated by traffic cones.

* Northbound diversion: Traffic wishing to continue its journey on the A339 will be taken through the town via Butts Road, Ackender Road and Lenten Street to the Basingstoke Road.

The top end of Ackender Road will be one-way northbound from the bend in the road to the junction with Basingstoke Road/Lenten Street. Parking will be prohibited on one side of this section of road to keep the traffic flowing.

The one-way section means there will be no access into Ackender Road from Basingstoke Road/Lenten Street, ‘no right turn’ from Queens Street, and ‘no left turn’ from Langham Road.

Should it be deemed necessary, for safety reasons, the traffic order allows for the ‘one way’ and ‘no parking’ restrictions to be extended to the entire length of Ackender Road. This has been provided for as a contingency measure as the order cannot be amended retrospectively.

The restrictions that apply will be indicated with cones and by covering up contradictory signage.

The existing traffic calming structures on Basingstoke Road/Lenten Street, west of the junction with Ackender Road, have been temporarily removed.

* HGV diversions will be via the A31, A331, and M3.

* Stagecoach bus routes: buses accessing Alton from the south will travel via the A31/Butts Road, not via Chawton Park Road.

Buses travelling south from Alton town centre will go via Butts Road and the A31, except for the No38 service, which will travel via Ackender Road, the B3349, Whitedown Lane and Chawton Park Road to reach Chawton and then continue its journey.

A spokesman for Knights Brown said: “We and Stagecoach are confident there is sufficient time in the schedule to accommodate this.”

People living in the Chawton Park Road area are advised to join services at Butts Road or the reinstated bus stops near the Chawton roundabout on the A31.

A bus replacement/taxi share service will operate on weekdays from Chawton Park Road. The detailed arrangements for this service are still being finalised by Hampshire County Council.