1 week Ago
COLCHESTER has been "brought to its knees" by a slew of roadworks which Essex County Council scheduled to take place at the same time, a councillor has said. Various utilities companies, whose permits are signed off by County Hall, are currently carrying out repairs across Colchester from Old Heath Road in New Town to Mile End Road on the other side of the city. Essex Highways are also carrying out a major infrastructure project which is affecting traffic in Clingoe Hill and Northern Approach Road.
Project – a bus lane is being constructed as part of a rapid transit project (Image: Essex Highways) The authority is now coming in for severe criticism after bosses scheduled the works to take place at the same time, with business owners, school pupils, and commuters all being affected by huge delays across the city. The most recent set of roadworks began on Tuesday when UK Power Networks started fixing an underground cable fault in Magdalen Street. The repairs, which are not expected to be completed until Monday, mean there is only one lane of traffic in each direction heading towards the crossroads connecting Wimpole Road with Brook Street.
A few hundred metres away, Old Heath Road has been completely shut since February whilst Cadent replace a set of gas mains. Work is expected to finish by Friday after two months. Over the Easter weekend, UK Power Networks also set up 24-hour temporary traffic lights in Bergholt Road, causing further delays before they were removed on Tuesday evening.
Larger infrastructure projects which are being carried out by Essex Highways are also being blamed for gridlock across the city. A rapid transit lane for public transport is being constructed in Clingoe Hill, near Greenstead, and Northern Approach Road in Mile End. Works in Clingoe Hill started in September and are expected to be finished by autumn; upgrades in Northern Approach Road started as along ago as January 2023 and were scheduled to be completed by early spring, but delays mean they will not finish until late next month.
Mile End councillor Martin Goss said the city had been “brought to its knees” by the gridlock and slammed Essex County Council for allowing so many of the roadworks to take place at the same time. He said: “I had three businesses in Bergholt Road contact me on Tuesday – the dentists, the vets, and then also Beauty at the Bay. Closed – Old Heath Road has been shut since February because Cadent Gas has been replacing gas mains (Image: Daniel Rees, Newsquest) “They have all been totally shafted because people can’t get to appointments.
“Pupils at Trinity School can’t get to school on time because all the buses are being held up. “I am just so angry at the way Colchester is being treated with numerous works, incompetent road planning, and the biggest road project in Essex is making people's lives a nightmare. “These roadworks have brought Colchester to its knees.
” Essex County Council was contacted for comment..
