Motorists in Nantwich have faced further gridlock today after CEC highways allowed road closures and roadworks on key routes at the same time.
Audlem Road has been closed since Monday for a week after CEC allowed private contractors to carry out sewer connection works for new housing off Peter De Stapleigh Way.
Today, engineers also set up roadworks and temporary lights on London Road – the main diversion route for traffic that would normally use Audlem Road and Peter de Stapleigh Way.
Temporary lights are set up close to the Leopard pub, causing long tailbacks through the level crossing and back to the lights at Newcastle Road and Elwood Way near Cheerbrook.
It’s not clear why these works are there, although some reports suggest it’s emergency works due to overnight power cuts.
The works are not currently highlighted on Cheshire East Council’s roadworks portal, One.Network
It has since emerged, from inquiries made by Nantwich News, that not all works impacting highways are added to the portal.
Many drivers and residents have taken to social media to vent their anger and frustration.
One resident said: “Oh my heavens, the road outside Brine Leas is still closed as is the Nantwich Road at Wells Green, so why has someone decided now is the day to dig up the London Road?
“The traffic trying to get into Nantwich is horrendous and the bigger lorries are struggling to get past the roadworks on London Road.”
Another added: “It’s an absolute joke! London Road was at a standstill and then as it started to move, the train barriers broke down.”
And a third resident said: “Avoid London Road if possible.
“Electricity works dug up road at Jackson Avenue with 3-way traffic lights. Lasting three days. Long delays down to Morrisons and Aldi, Churches Mansion roundabout past the Vets.”
A CEC spokesperson said the works taking place from Monday 12 August are being carried out by a contractor called WPI Group and relate to the new housing development by Muller.
There have been a host of other road closures across Nantwich and Crewe this summer, including full and partial closures of the A500 Shavington bypass for several weeks.
The image below from Cheshire East’s One.Network portal shows the number of road closures currently in place across Crewe and Nantwich.
In agreeing with most of the posts. The work done near Tesco’s is a classic example of poor management control. It took weeks to do very little other than cause traffic chaos. It is as though the forward planning is to cause as much traffic problems as possible.
This lot couldn’t run a bath.
Concur with Ian Hughes’ comment. Communication is a BIG must when running an organisation, something which fails miserably when we are dealing with CEC
Eric, Wells Green emergency repair, being done outside term time was supposed to be done earlier but it really did mess things up, London Road repairs outside term time the rest are emergency, maybe you need to follow the CEC web pages and then you don’t get stuck
Absolutely right, do the Councillors have any control over the officers at all. The Council leader has gone, it is time the rest of them did too. Roll on the next elections, they will find out just how angry we are.
These are NOT emergency road works at all. Most of them were known about well in advance and should have been co-ordinated so as to minimise disruption to road users. Does Cheshire East actually employ any traffic engineers? The Councillors for this area will find out just how angry we are at the next elections. I have never voted Conservative but they can’t be more useless than this lot.
Moan moan moan emergency road works are just that unplanned often due to utilities not being maintained by people other than Cheshire East, if your out to blame people at least get it right
It’s not just nantwich, it’s crewe as well, they’ve got sydney road closed as well as middlewich street so all vehicles from this side of crewe are heading down broad street so absolute nightmare. Everything with cheshire east revolves around building more and more houses and the people planning all of this don’t live here and the councillors don’t care.
What is of great concern that I have now witnessed two ambulances on blue lights emergency calls get to the closed Audlem road road works and have been forced to turn round and head back up Peter de Stapleigh way to find an alternative root.
Is there not supposed to be provision made to emergency services access?
Lets be open we are talking about Cheshire East Council. People never plan to fail, however they fail to plan. it is obvious they all work in silos, the right hand does not know what the left is doing. We all appreciate road works have to be completed, however some planning and common sense should prevail somewhere in the organisation.
They will probably blame on the temporary staff, of which agency staff cost the tax payer £700,000 !!!!