WEST WORCESTERSHIRE MP Dame Harriett Baldwin has repeated her call for urgent action to fix a collapsed road which is forcing local people to make huge diversions to get to and from work.
The B4204 road at Rochford collapsed at the beginning of February but local people contacted their MP to complain that they’d seen no one from the county council and no action in over eight weeks.
Worcestershire County Council has written to Dame Harriett criticising her for visiting the site and confirming that there is no plan to repair the road, although Openreach have pledged to move a telegraph pole, which is at risk of collapse, to preserve the local internet connections.
The MP has now contacted the interim county councillor responsible for the repairs urging him to visit the site, to talk to local people and put in place an urgent plan for repairs and to re-open the road.
Dame Harriett said: “Residents are clearly frustrated by the lack of visible action and instead the council seem to be focused on hardening the road closure measures rather than putting a repair plan in place.
“Local people continue contact to me to share their anger at the lack of a plan or any communications and I’ve been passing their feedback onto the council’s chief executive.
“This is an issue that needs strong and decisive political leadership and I’m hoping that councillors – even if they are interim – will be onsite very soon to talk to residents, listen to their concerns and tell them what they plan to do about fixing the road.
“Sadly the Reform council leadership seems to be in a state of flux but while they are re-arranging the Cabinet, the people of Rochford and the Teme Valley care more about getting the issue fixed.”
Worcestershire County Council have said the ground movement is still active, which has caused the delay.
“Council officers and specialist geotechnical engineers have recently met to assess the situation and determine the safest and most appropriate way forward.
“Due to the complexity and scale of the issue, a repair would require a carefully designed, engineered solution to ensure the long-term stability of the road and surrounding land.
“Causeway One Network provides a date for expiry of the permit of March 2027, demonstrating that this is not a situation where a quick or temporary fix would be safe; this will be reviewed.
“Whilst we fully recognise the significant disruption this closure is causing to residents and road users, safety must remain our absolute priority.
“We are reviewing how information about the ongoing closure and works is being communicated and are committed to providing more consistent updates as work progresses.”
