COLCHESTER Council has been left counting the cost of the on-going roadworks in Ipswich Road.

The £10million scheme to make the double roundabouts at the bottom of Ipswich and Harwich roads into single roundabouts has been a major body of work.

Unforeseen, if inevitable, problems have caused delays, so the scheme which was due to be completed by the end of this year will now run until next summer.

No-one wanted this and it has been the businesses in the area which have been hit the hardest.

Colchester Council said it expects to lose in the region of £257,000 in revenue from Leisure World partly as a result of the roadworks.

This is a very tangible figure and other businesses are certain to have suffered similarly.

Colchester’s road network is already badly snarled up - hence the need for the roadworks - and the protracted and debilitating roadworks have only made matters worse.

In these uncertain and difficult economic times, the loss of any income can have a devastating effect.

So to lose revenue for months, running into years, can be catastrophic.

Of course, it will all be worth it in the long run if the traffic moves more swiftly around the town and the air is cleaner as a result.

But spare a thought for those businesses who have, by association, paid for the works.

We can only hope the new year brings the benefits they so dearly deserve.