It’s half-way there, but things are about to get worse before they get better for drivers using a section of one of London’s busiest east-west arteries.

A nearly two-kilometre stretch of Commissioners Road, east of its intersection with Wonderland Road, will be closed to through traffic for five days starting Monday, the fallout of a major roadwork project, knocking out the route from Knights Hill to Topping Lane.

But commuters aren’t the only ones affected.

At the commercial plaza at the busy crossing, some businesses say they’ve already taken a hit from the first year of the two-year project to upgrade Commissioners.

“It is largely affecting our business. It’s hard to get in and out of the plaza and we’ve lost a lot of (customer) traffic,” said Wilson Ortega, an employee at Nimbus Water Depot, a retailer in the Commissioners Court Plaza.

“It’s been bad here since March and a lot of customers are upset they can’t get here easily.”

The second phase of the $12.9-million project began in March. City officials said the plan is to have the work done by November.

The road is being widened, with upgrades to other city and utility infrastructure along the route. The project is among nearly $174 million worth of road, sewer and water improvements the city is taking on this year.

Tens of thousands of vehicles approach the Commissioners-Wonderland intersection daily, but summer traffic lulls make the timing better for the work.

The project was planned to reduce the fallout for motorists, said Ugo Decandido, the city’s division manager for construction administration.

“Summer holidays is when the traffic is reduced in the city, as opposed to doing it during the school year with school buses and more traffic,” he said.

Even so, employees in the plaza say congestion has meant fewer customers.

“The construction makes it so crowded that a lot of people seem to try to avoid the area,” said Aalia Hussein, 17, who works part-time at Sundown Tea. “It definitely slows things down.”

Other businesses, however, say they’re rolling with the work.

“Our biggest struggle has been people not getting to their appointments in time,” said Jen Quinlan at Fabutan Sun Tan Studios, adding customers have had to build in longer travel time.

THE NUMBERS

London roadwork this season

$173.8 million: Total value of construction

$62.7 million: Roads

$8.5 million: Sewers

$42.6 million: Water improvements

95: Lane kilometres of roads to be reconstructed.

21: Kilometres of sanitary and storm sewer work

22.5: Kilometres of trenchless sewer work

11.8: Kilometres of trenchless watermain work.