A councillor has vowed to continue working to address traffic issues on nearby routes in the wake of the beginning of a major road closure.

The £22.68million transformation of busy Aurs Road officially began this month, with the closure in place until December.

The stretch is shut from the junction of Springfield Road in Barrhead to the junction of Stewarton Road in Newton Mearns, with signed diversion routes in place via Stewarton Road, Nitshill Road and Darnley Road.

Since the works got underway concerns have been raised about issues with potholes, traffic flow and traffic lights sequences on roads adjacent to the project, particularly Darnley Road in East Renfrewshire and Parkhouse Road on the Glasgow City Council side.

One Barrhead resident, John Kennedy-Barnett said traffic flow has been a “nightmare” and described how he recently “ended up doubling back onto the motorway again and coming off at Silverburn.”

“I took a risk and used this road (Darnley Road) on Saturday," added the 49-year-old. 

"How wrong was I? Worse than ever and traffic queued right back all along the road."

Another commenting on social media during the first week of the works said: “Absolute disaster of planning so far with not being able to divert the traffic appropriately.

“Darnley Road, Parkhouse Road, Willowford Road, all that lead out of Barrhead were at a standstill in the morning rush.

“Hundreds of families in Parkhouse totally stuck trying to get out their homes.”

The works, which will transform Aurs Road from a winding, single carriage road to a safer, straighter road with a new active travel route and waterside promenade overlooking Balgray Reservoir, began on Monday, January 8 with a ground-breaking ceremony taking place later that week. 

Following the start of the closure, councillor Chris Lunday confirmed that there has been “a number of issues in this area.”

“The problems definitely worsen when crossing over to the Glasgow City Council boundary at Parkhouse Road,” he added.

“I have been working with East Renfrewshire Council and Cllr Roza Salih of Greater Pollok ward in Glasgow City Council to try and resolve these issues.

“There is bound to be increased pressure on this road due to the Aurs Road closure.

"I will be speaking to officers to see what can be done to resolve some of the issues."

Led by East Renfrewshire Council, the £22.68 million project is being funded through £12.72 million from the Glasgow City Region City Deal, which is made up of £5.5 million in funding by both the UK and Scottish governments and £1.72 million from East Renfrewshire Council.

Once work is complete, the road will bring a more direct local route between Barrhead and Newton Mearns by straightening out two sections of the road and replacing a weak bridge.

In response to the issues raised, a council spokesperson said: ”Since announcing our plans for transforming Aurs Road, we've had a fantastic response from residents who are excited about the delivery of a much needed improved and straightened road with active travel link.

“We appreciate that the road closure will no doubt cause inconvenience over the next year, but the end result will be worthwhile for all.

“We are in communication with Glasgow City Council on the diversion route and they are actively monitoring the traffic flow.

“The traffic lights at Parkhouse Road in Darnley have been adjusted to give more time which should assist with a better flow of traffic.”

A Glasgow City Council spokesperson, meanwhile, said they were not aware of any particular problems on their side.