Roadworks will see part of a busy road in Ashford closed for up to 32 weeks.

The work on Newtown Road, which starts on Monday, April 16, means it will be closed at the junction with Romney Marsh Road until the works finish, in November.

These improvement works, which are being carried out by Walker Construction, are part of the £90 million expansion of the McArthurGlen Designer Outlet.

They include removing the roundabouts in the area and introducing a signalised junction and pedestrian crossing. The area will also be re-landscaped.

A Walker Construction spokeswoman said: “The maintenance and improvement projects have been carefully planned to allow roadworks to be completed safely, while keeping disruption to road users to a minimum.

"Normal working hours will be from 07.30 hours until 18.00 hours Monday-Saturday, and no plant or equipment will be used before 08.00 hours.

"Every effort will be made to reduce any inconvenience to the local community."

Commuters to the Ashford International side of the station will not be able to access it from the Romney Marsh Road, instead they will have to use the same diversions as Newtown residents, which will be via the Orbital Park Roundabout onto Crowbridge Road.

An HS1 Ltd spokesman: “The planned expansion of the Designer Outlet is a testament to the exciting growth happening in the Ashford area.

"We will be working closely with McArthurGlen to minimise any disruption to the station and its car parks while these works take place and we look forward to seeing the completed project and the new visitors it brings to the area”.

However, residents in Newtown very unhappy about the road closure.

Liz Thorne, of the South Willesborough and Newtown (SWAN) Community Group, said: "We were very shocked to hear of the proposed closure, with such short notice.

"For many residents, the first that we heard of the letter from Walker Construction was seeing a copy of it on Facebook.

"Many of us have not actually received a letter at all. How many other residents, who do not use social media, are still unaware?

"We are concerned about increased traffic flows, all of the vehicles needing to access Ashford International station and car parks will be using Crowbridge Road and Newtown Road.

"The hump backed bridge in Crowbridge Road is only wide enough to fit the smallest of vehicles side-by-side over it, and visibility on the approach is not good for cars because of the height of the bridge.

"This will be an accident waiting to happen. It should be controlled by temporary traffic lights during this time.

"There is only one pedestrian crossing along the whole length of the road, which will make crossing dangerous in other parts of the area."

She added: "Our other main concern is for the movement of local people.

"For eight months anyone from Newtown and South Willesborough wishing to access the town centre will have to make a substantial detour via Crowbridge Road, Church Road and Hythe Road, or through Orbital Park.

"These areas already have high traffic flows and there will be an additional cost for drivers over the eight months and an additional time element.

"No one has, as yet, been advised what changes will be made to public transport routes and timetables to accommodate the road closure, even though this is all happening in under a fortnight.

"Whilst we understand the need to keep pedestrians safe, residents feel that they have been neglected in the planning and implementation process.

"Given the impact that this will have on the communities of Newtown and South Willesborough, the concerned parties should have worked with us to minimise disruption and hear our concerns.

"We fail to see how works in such a small area will take a full 32 weeks, and why it could not be done in stages to keep the road open for some of the time.

"Maybe if they had spoken to us we would have had a better understanding, and people wouldn’t be so angry about it."

Cllr David Smith, whose ward is South Willesborough, said: "It seems ridiculous, as 32 weeks seems a very, very long time.

"Why can't they have it as a lightly controlled area as the works are carried out, instead of closing part of the road?

"This issue has caused considerable upset for my residents and our neighbours in Newtown due to the length of time and lack of consultation.

"What concerns me is that the residents were left in the dark. There's been a lot of disquiet."

Motorists are being told the roadworks at the other end of the Designer Outlet, near Asda, should be completed by the time these new ones begin.

These previous roadworks, which started in February, caused huge delays on the A2042 Avenue Jacques Faucheux as a new filter lane was put in, which directs traffic straight to the shopping centre, as well as an exit lane from the new 750 space car park behind Asda.

As well as the roadworks taking place, McArthurGlen is spending an additional £1.5m in the area which includes:

• A completely re-landscaped access route from the Designer Outlet to the Ashford International Station and the town centre to improve safety and access

• A shuttle bus from the Designer Outlet to Ashford town centre during peak times

• Enhancement works at Junction 10a of the M20, which is hoped to eventually improve commuters' journey time to the shopping centre and Ashford International Station

• Further support to Ashford Borough Council’s town centre improvements

Peter Corr, centre manager of the McArthurGlen Designer Outlet said: "We do understand that commuters will be inconvenienced during the works period.

"However, we believe that this disruption will provide long term economic benefits for our Ashford community.”

A ceremony to celebrate the start of the construction to create the extension at the Designer Outlet took place last Thursday.

Cllr Gerry Clarkson, leader of Ashford Borough Council; Tracey Kerly, ABC's chief executive; Andrew Osborne, ABC's economic development manager; Peter Corr, the Designer Outlet centre manager and Gareth Peebles of McLaren Construction all visited the shopping centre to mark the occasion.

The £90m expansion, which is one of Ashford's Big 8 projects, will add an additional 50 units to the Outlet as well as creating 500 new jobs.

It is set to open in September next year.

Cllr Clarkson said: “The expansion of the Designer Outlet will transform it into one of the UK’s premier outlet centres, enhancing the shopping experience and providing a complementary offer to our town centre.

“This illustrates the confidence that major investors have in Ashford and the borough’s future.

"It is clear that we are gaining a growing reputation as a town attracting inward investment and high-calibre, quality brands.

“It is pleasing to see work start on another one of our Big 8 projects which together will transform the fortunes of the borough.”

Peter Corr added: "Together with our colleagues, we are working hard to put Destination Ashford on the map as one of the UK’s major visitor destinations.

"Our expansion is an incredibly exciting project for the local area and proudly forms part of the Ashford Big 8.”