The building of a key section of a long-awaited £6.2m Dawlish link road and bridge is "well underway", according to Teignbridge District Council.

Work reportedly started on schedule at the end of August, with much of the work since focused on setting up the site.

A haul road has been laid, a works compound with temporary power installed, vegetation and tree stumps removed and a temporary crossing of Shutterton Brook put in place alongside temporary water management drainage.

"Percussive piling" to prepare the area for the bridge to be installed will begin on 13 November, according to the contractor. It is expected to last for two weeks and will be restricted to the hours of 9am to 5pm.

The project is on track to be completed "in the middle of next year".

The link road will connect 860 new homes on the outskirts of the town to the A379 in a bid to direct traffic north out of Dawlish towards Exeter, instead of along Elm Grove Road.

Map of Dawlish link road and bridge (TDC)

The government-funded first phase of the project is marked in yellow on the map above.

The work currently underway is in area three. The first section of the road in area four has already been constructed.

The developer-funded second phase, marked in blue, will be built afterwards.

Funding for the project comes from a £4.9m government grant, first agreed in 2019, and £1.3m in developer contributions.