South Devon Link Road opens between Torbay and Newton Abbot

The South Devon Link Road connects Torbay and Newton Abbot, bypassing Kingskerswell

A major new bypass in Devon costing £110m has opened.

The South Devon Link Road connects Torbay and Newton Abbot, bypassing Kingskerswell, which was one of the most heavily used roads in the county.

The scheme started in 2012 and has resulted in a 3.4 mile (5.5km) dual carriageway being built.

Gordon Oliver, Mayor of Torbay, said the bypass was something the "people of south Devon and Torbay had wanted for many, many years".

John Hart, Leader of Devon County Council said: "We've had everything thrown at us from rain and hail to blockage at Dawlish and goodness knows what else.

"The road is in place, people are going to be using it and I think they will wake up to the fact they are no longer stuck in a traffic jam."

The bypass has cost about £110m

The scheme started in July 2012 and has resulted in a 5.5km dual carriageway being built

The road bypasses the A380 between Penn Inn, Newton Abbot and Kerswell Gardens in Torquay, which was one of the most choked up and heavily used roads in the South West, carrying more than 35,000 vehicles a day.

The project was granted full approval by the government in May 2012 and work began in the autumn of that year.

Chris Hastings, project director for the contractor that built the road, Galliford Try, said: "It has been delivered on time and it has been delivered safely. We have worked nearly a million and a half man hours and we've had virtually no accidents."

The new road will bypass the A380 which was one of the most heavily used roads in the region