And, Bulahdelah Chamber of Commerce president John Sahyoun knows that first-hand.

He experienced a similar scenario in June 2013 when, after three years of construction, a bypass of the small town - located on the border of the Hunter region and the Mid North Coast of NSW – opened to traffic.

The 8.6km diversion of Bulahdelah was part of a $7.92 billion Pacific Highway upgrade between Hexham and the Queensland border.

With plans for the impending Scone bypass well underway, The Advocate spoke to Mr Sahyoun, who admitted there was a lot of worry, initially, within his community.

“People were concerned about the impact it would have on local business, the environment, endangered species and heritage land,” he said.

In an attempt to improve the highway, the project involved building 12 new bridges including twin 245m long bridges over the Myall River.

About 1.1 million cubic metres of material was removed as part of the earthwork – the equivalent to 440 Olympic swimming pools of dirt.

“We thought that when the bypass went through there would be a lot of problems,” Mr Sahyoun said.

“But, one of the things we actually discovered is that visitation picked up and it has had an overall positive impact on business within the town.

“There has certainly been a reduction in traffic incidents – where the highway was, it is now a lot quieter and it has enhanced what we have in town.”

Mr Sahyoun added he was sympathetic that the process is hard and the community has to stay positive.

“The real work begins now,” he said.

“My advice would just be keep at it and don’t lose hope – look at a clear branding message for the town, envision that and stick to it.”

Mr Sahyoun said re-branding was something that was crucial to Bulahdelah during the process and is ongoing.

Strategies such as increasing their online presence, promotional material and a council funded $1.1 million makeover of the Bulahdelah town centre were all part of their post-bypass survival plan.

“If you have a town that is a lot nicer to live in with traffic being diverted out of town, you can promote that,” he said.

The Bulahdelah Chamber of Commerce and Tourism was the winner of the Local Chamber of Commerce award at the 2017 Hunter Business Awards last week, with Scone Chamber of Commerce and two local businesses attending as finalists.

"The message I would give to the lovely people of Scone is simply stay strong, good luck with everything and look at the positives,” he said.

The Australian and NSW governments have committed $120 million for construction of the Scone bypass within completion within the next 2-3 years.