Worry over closure of Costessey road
A business owner has branded a 17-week road closure on the city's outskirts as 'out of order'.
Isobel Ford, 60, from Costessey, said she found it difficult to understand why Norfolk County Council needed to completely shut The Street, which leads between Costessey and Drayton, for that period.
The �100,000 works, which will involve the construction of a new footway and road humps, are due to start on Monday and will run into March – although the closure will be lifted for a three-week period over Christmas.
Ms Ford, who runs Isobel's clothing boutique in Drayton, said she worried about the effect the closure, between West End and Mill Bridge, would have on traffic congestion and businesses in the area. 'I'm complaining not just because of the business, but it's a matter of principle,' she said.
'I accept that if they are going to work they will have to close it for the time they need, but I cannot understand why they have to close it permanently for that time. It seems excessive.'
Ms Ford claims that when works have taken place in the past, temporary barriers have been used to block the road which were removed at the end of the working day and during weekends.
'If they used plastic barriers and at 4pm people were able to move them back, that would seem acceptable, but this time to put up a solid barrier seems out of order,' she added.
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A spokesman for Norfolk County Council said due to the narrowness of the road, it was considered safer for the workforce and public to close the route. All properties within the closure will have their access maintained.
He said: 'In our view, lifting the closure in the evenings and weekends can give a confusing message to motorists who would not know whether the road was open or closed at any specific time.
'It may also be that the works would not always be at an appropriate position to fully open the road and it would only mean extending the overall duration.'
Diversions will be via the A1067 Drayton Road, the A140 outer ring road and the A1074 Dereham Road.
