A six-month scheme to improve a notorious Halesowen road junction is under way.

Work has started on the project which will overhaul the junction of Coombs Road, Haden Hill Road and Dudley Road, in Halesowen. A pedestrian crossing will be added while the layout of the junction will be altered make it easier for traffic to get onto Dudley Road.

Temporary traffic lights have gone up and will remain in place until the end of May.

The work is likely to cause significant disruption on the busy route which leads towards the M5. Highways bosses, though, hope the changes will solve the problems drivers have faced at the junction.

Around 300 homes are set to be built in the area over next five years and bosses are keen to make the junction more traffic friendly. Chiefs also want to improve safety for pedestrians at the junction, which is close to both Halesowen College and Earls High School.

Currently, schoolchildren and college students have to wait for traffic to stop at the traffic lights before crossing the road but there is no designated pedestrian crossing.

It is the latest highways improvement scheme in the borough following major changes near the Merry Hill shopping centre. That scheme has seen the traffic lights upgraded on the main A4036 to ease congestion in the area.