West Bromwich traders: Road closure is killing our trade
The long-standing owners of a newsagents and fish and chip shop in West Bromwich fear three months of roadworks will have a damaging impact on their businesses.
Access to Harvills Hawthorn, Hill Top, will be restricted until at least March, with various road closures to be in place during that time.
The road is regularly used as a through route from the busy A4916 Hill Top to the Black Country New Road at the other end, but this will not be possible while the work is ongoing.
South Staffs Water has started work to upgrade a major trunk main which runs under the estate. The work will be carried out in 100 metre phases and will take around 15 weeks to complete. Harvills Hawthorn is expected to be closed until the middle of February.
The company said access to businesses should still be possible as the work is being carried out.
But Santokh Khangure, who has run Kays News for 16 years, said he is reliant on passing trade and has already felt the impact of the works after just one week.
He said: "I am sitting here for nothing, no-one is coming in. A lot of people who come in are from passing trade and it has completely gone."
Mr Khangure said he was concerned about the coming weeks and questioned whether parts of the road could have been kept open.
"It is slowly getting worse. This could be a threat to my business, couldn't they have closed half of the road so people can get through?"
For Balvinder Jagpal, who runs the Ocean Fish Bar next door, said: "Customers who walk through the estate can't even get through because they've shut off the footpath.
"It's affecting me quite severely. It has been shut off altogether, no traffic is coming up that road. Anyone who wants to go to Great Bridge now has to go right round.
"I'm down by around £300 compared to usual."
Mike Morris, network performance manager at South Staffs Water, apologised for any disruption caused by the project.
He said: "This work is being carried out to improve the reliability of the water as it passes through the trunk main.
"While it should not disrupt individual water supplies, to ensure the safety of residents and employees, it will be necessary to limit road access at certain times."
