Up to three months of further work needs to be carried out on Walsall’s ring road revamp despite the multi-million pound project’s much-trumpeted completion.

The new section of the road system opened to drivers this week.

Bad weather and underground cables were blamed for delays of more than a year. Now, finishing off bus lanes at the Wolverhampton Road-Pleck Road junction and tidying-up work such as chipped kerbs still needs to be carried out. This could take another three months before the scheme is completed.

Steve Pretty, head of engineering and transportation at Walsall Council, said: “The main works are complete, and the ring road is fully operational to the general public.

“However, some bus lanes are not yet in use, and some minor corrective work will also be taking place on and off over the next two or three months. This is standard for a scheme of this size.”

The scheme has seen a new Arboretum junction and dual carriageway along Littleton Street created but has suffered a number of delays, which have also contributed to the project going nearly £5million over budget.

When work began in July 2006, transport chiefs hoped that it would be ready in two years.

The final work to open up the Wolverhampton Road-Pleck Road junction finished on Monday. It came after workers from Norwest Holst battled for 14 hours last weekend to get the road operational to motorists.

A team of 16 staff were working from 7am in an attempt to finish wiring traffic lights at the Pleck Road junction but electrical problems were detected in cables leading to new lights.

The mile-long stretch of road has been created to ease congestion through the town centre.

An internal assessment of the project and the time it took is due to be carried out by council chiefs.