The NSW government revealed in October 2020 that a 50-metre-wide roundabout would be installed at the junction of Gocup Road and the Snowy Mountains Highway in Tumut following a number of fatal crashes and near misses at the location.

A mid-2022 completion date was subsequently flagged for the $15 million project but the work is now due to finish in mid-2023.

Transport for NSW said early work at the intersection - which included setting up the work site, removing vegetation to improve visibility and relocating utilities - had been delayed by wet weather but was now complete.

Major earthworks for the new roundabout are expected to start from today.

The work will involve widening the intersection and flattening the slope along Gocup Road and the Snowy Mountains Highway.

Transport for NSW said the work will be carried out from 7am to 5.30pm on weekdays and from 7am to 1pm on Saturdays, weather permitting.

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As a result, single lane closures, traffic control and a reduced speed limit of 40km/h will be in place at the busy intersection.

Transport for NSW has warned travel times through the area may be affected.

Motorists have been advised to drive to the conditions, and to follow the directions of signs and traffic control.

"The closure of Capper Street is not required at this stage of the work," Transport for NSW said.

"We will keep the community updated when this needs to happen, along with other project updates."

The roundabout plans were announced six months after a woman, her unborn child and 10-year-old daughter died following a collision involving their car and a semi-trailer at the intersection in May 2020.

Snowy Valleys residents had previously said they would prefer to see the intersection moved from the site, which Transport for NSW identified as being in the top 2.1 per cent of intersections in the state for risk.

Tumut Community Association president Christine Webb was among those who had called for the relocation of the intersection and said that remained the residents' overall position.

"The community is generally not happy about a roundabout," Mrs Webb said.

"Their preferred option was relocation of that intersection up to where the saleyards are."

Truck drivers have also aired their concerns that larger vehicles may have trouble navigating the roundabout and Mrs Webb stressed the risks posed at the intersection remained.

"They're concerned that they're going to actually run over the top of somebody trying to negotiate that roundabout or land on their side," she said.

While the government was "doing something" at the location, Mrs Webb said she would be watching closely to see what the earthworks do to improve visibility.

"They're doing something, but it's a Band-Aid solution and there's real concern about fatalities," she said.

"It hasn't taken away the risk of more fatalities there at that intersection."

Transport for NSW said the NSW Centre for Road Safety investigated a number of options as part of a review of the site - including traffic lights, closing Capper Street, raising the intersection, closing Gocup Road and moving the intersection - but a roundabout was determined to be the best solution.

The upgrade, jointly funded by the federal and NSW governments, is expected to be finished in mid-2023.

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