Pain of Seven Hills Road closure begins to be felt

Mar 31 2010 By Vicki Eltis

Diversions at Seven Hills Road

'GHASTLY' roadworks and diversions are doubling journey times in Elmbridge as gas replacement works get underway in Seven Hills Road.

Traffic hit parts of Walton, Weybridge, Hersham and Cobham from Monday (March 29) as the roadworks began in the road which links to the A3 and the M25 motorway, for the two-week Easter holiday period.

Weybridge Society were instrumental in persuading Surrey County Council (SCC) and Southern Gas to reduce the amount of time taken to replace the gas mains down from six months, in December last year.

But residents, who live in the road say it's chaotic. Suzanne Clarke, said: "This is just ghastly and there is chaos. My daughter, Anne Roebuck, is currently staying with us and she is 41 weeks pregnant so if she goes into labour it is going to take us twice as long to get to the hospital."

At the moment residents are being forced to go in and out of the road using the entrance by Burwood Road, and Mrs Clarke says the diversions are doubling her journey times.

She added: "We have to go back on ourselves through Hersham just to get to Weybridge. The traffic along Byfleet Road, in Cobham, has been dreadful and the diversions are doubling everyone's journey time."

John Wild, general manager, said: "Although it has affected business we will be open as usual throughout Easter. People wanting to visit us are able to access the centre via Hersham."

AS the road is long and not that frequented by pedestrians, Joe Hall, transport panel chairman from the Weybridge Society suggested to SCC that cyclists should be able to use the pathway too while the road is closed. They disagreed. He said: "It's ridiculous. It's a missed opportunity to get people out of their cars and on their bikes."

John Fuller, of Byfleet Road, who also fought hard against the initial six weeks plans added: "I hear the diversion through Weybridge is getting bad. Southern Gas have done its best to listen to us and I am still pleased with the marvellous result we've had but if they'd kept to the original schedule I think we all would have been going stark, raving mad!"

The road will re-open again on Monday April 12 and then close in the Summer holidays.