DRIVERS have been warned to brace themselves for 14 months of roadworks on a Hampshire motorway.

Later this month motorists will be subject to 50mph speed limits and overnight lane closures during work to widen the M27 to the east of the New Forest.

The Highways Agency says motorists can expect delays of up to ten minutes during the £36m scheme to build a fourth lane in both directions between junctions three and four, which begins on Saturday.

The scheme will begin with three months of lane narrowing to allow work on the central reservation before the hard shoulders are transformed into extra lanes.

Highway bosses reckon they could finish the major work by Christmas and that every effort will be made to minimise disruption and congestion.

However contractors have ruled out doing overnight work to speed up the project to keep the noise levels down for residents.

advertisement There will be up to 12 road closures between 10pm and 6am on Saturday nights for new gantries to be installed.

The section between junctions three and four - the M271 and M3 interchanges - carries about 121,000 vehicles a day. The numbers are expected to rise by ten per cent over the next 15 years.