Traders hit by road closure want help to pay bills

Resurfacing work on George Street was supposed to be completed over two nights

Businesses affected by a month-long road closure in a Cotswold town have been told they will be able to apply for compensation.

Resurfacing work on George Street in Nailsworth was supposed to be completed over a couple of nights, but was delayed for four weeks after machinery hit a gas main.

Gloucestershire Highways said the gas main repairs are now complete and it now aims to reopen the road on Wednesday 14 May.

Shop owner Charlotte Miles said she had "a lot of bills to pay and no takings to pay them".

Charlotte Miles (right) said she just wants to "get back to business"

Ms Miles, who owns Pulp Lifestyle, said the closure had been frustrating due to a lack of information.

She said: "We've not been told anything official. It's deathly quiet on the street and it's just completely killed the trade.

"We were told if it [the closure] got to 28 days we could attempt to claim. We have a form to fill in and some hoops to go through.

"We don't know how long it will take or if we'll get the full percentage of what we lost, but we're just going to go for it. I'm still a little bit cagey about it", she added.

"We just want to get back to business and try and clear up the mess. A lot of us have got a lot of bills to pay and have had no takings to pay them, so hopefully we can get back on track".

Paddy Coyle, owner of Nailsworth Computer Shop, says the closure had made things feel "eerie".

"It's only a short road with 14 shops, but the diversity of shops we have attracts a lot of people. Having this road closed is killing not just us, but the rest of the town," he said.

Gloucestershire County Council thanked traders for their patience

A Gloucestershire County Council spokesperson said it had carried out a site inspection after the Wales and West works, and that the defective concrete has now been replaced.

Highways workers carried out preparatory works and are resurfacing with the aim of reopening the road on Wednesday morning.

"There will also be a short closure on Wednesday evening while lining works are carried out and the road will then be fully open," a council spokesperson said.

"We would like to thank residents and traders again for their patience and understanding during these works."

'Extremely challenging' repair

Stuart Meddick ,Wales & West Utilities Senior Performance Manager for Stroud, said: "We had been working in the George Road area of Nailsworth to repair a gas pipe following damage caused by third-party contractors resurfacing the road.

"This has been an extremely challenging repair and we do appreciate the inconvenience that has been caused.

"We have been in liaison with some businesses who have enquired about compensation linked to loss of business.

"Compensation in these circumstances can be applied for under the relevant statutory regulations that we must adhere to.

"In this case, businesses will be entitled to make a claim under the regulations to establish if their circumstances qualify for compensation and we have already been in contact with some businesses to advise them of this.

"We would like to apologise for the inconvenience caused by this challenging repair and thank local people for their patience."