DRIVERS in Newton Abbot are facing long delays due to temporary traffic lights on the Ashburton Road.

Having contacted Devon County Council, the Mid-Devon Advertiser was told there is an issue with one of the manhole covers and that the lights would be removed once the issue is resolved.

Speaking to the Mid-Devon Advertiser, one driver said: ‘It is a complete joke.

‘It took me nearly an hour to from Hele Park to town.

‘And when I got to the lights... there wasn't even anybody there working!’

Unfortunately, the delays experienced by drivers this week are a sign of things to come.

Utility work to the key Newton Abbot road is due to start in February.

Work to install utility services along the A383 to the Houghton Barton housing development had been due to start in November 2025.

However, the work was pushed back until February 2026 after a public backlash and subsequent discussions between the key players: Teignbridge District Council, Devon County Council and Bloor Homes.

As such, Bloor Homes will carry out the work under temporary traffic lights for around 30 weeks from February.

Devon County Council’s interactive roadworks map gives a start date of February 16.

The work was originally due to take up to 50 weeks, but the housing developer’s contractor agreed to a series of mitigation measures to minimise the impact of the work.

These include: extended hours and additional staff; work on verges and pavements where possible rather than the road and temporary traffic lights will be manually controlled and work will be managed to reduce the need for three-way traffic lights.