Express & Star

Stafford drivers face 15-MILE diversion due to road closures

Residents have been left angered at the prospect of two road closures near to Stafford's County Hospital - one of which involves a 15-mile diversion.

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Where the central reservation needs to be realigned

A stretch of the Weston Road will be shut off for a week from Monday, October 23, to allow for Staffordshire County Council to carry out realignment of the central reservation outside Veritas Academy.

The busy route serves Beacon Business Park and Staffordshire Police's HQ, while further west is the hospital.

The recommended diversion will take motorists up towards Stone on the A34 and A51 - or vice versa - adding an extra 24 minutes on to their journey, although alternative none-signposted routes may also be available.

One mitigating factor is that the scheme will at least be carried out during the half-term school break.

The week before St. Thomas Lane will be shut off from Monday, October 16, for more than two months until just before Christmas to allow for work on installing new sewer and storm connections.

Although that diversion will not be as disruptive simply taking drivers up Blackheath Lane and then back on to Tixall Road past Stafford Crematorium.

However they will still have to contend with the existing temporary traffic signals on Tixall Lane which are in place until November 12.

Residents on the Baswich Community Group's Facebook page have expressed concerns particularly about the Weston Road closure.

Mark Jurkiewicz posted: "This really just beggars belief. Why do they need to close the road? How about working round the clock."

While Alison Nicole Dollery said it would make one of her journeys 'hell'.

The St. Thomas Lane roadworks also prompted frustration.

Sandra Johnson said: "Why is St. Thomas Lane closed, roadworks on Tixall Road and wait for it Weston Road closed all at the same time? Let's hope no one has an emergency as access will be extremely slow."

Staffordshire Police stated restricted access to Weston Road will cause disruption for staff. A spokesman said: "We are aware of the road closure and appreciate that the council has opted for the half-term week to reduce the amount of disruption expected to be caused. As the road closure does not extend as far as our front gate, the only disruption will be to the route our staff take to access the HQ. However as we have multiple entrances to the facility, we can also remain flexible to the situation if necessary. We will be advising our staff of the best advice to reduce disruption nearer to the time."