Reservoir road reopens after two-year closure

Thousands of people signed a petition calling for the road at Thirlmere reservoir to reopen

A road alongside a reservoir has reopened, two and a half years after it was "temporarily" closed due to storm damage.

The U7003 in Thirlmere was shut due to an “unacceptably high risk” of rock and tree falls at Rough Crag, following Storm Arwen in November 2021.

Cumberland Council said it had to start legal action against landowner United Utilities for the work to be carried out.

The water firm said it was "good news" the road had reopened following "our completion of safety work".

In November, it blamed a delay due to fears over damaging protected plants and needed special permission.

The local authority said it would now move on to the next stage of reopening the whole road to two-way traffic across the dam wall.

'Major inconvenience'

More than 11,000 people petitioned for the road to open after walkers, cyclists and horse riders were forced to use the busy A591on the eastern side of the water.

Cumberland Council is responsible for the road but the surrounding land is owned by United Utilities.

The road runs along the west side of Thirlmere

Denise Rollo, executive member for sustainable, resilient and connected places said: “It has been a priority of mine to see this road reopened, and a shame we had to resort to taking legal steps to ensure these repairs were completed.

“I know the public will be thrilled to have this road open again, and I want to thank everyone for their continued patience during the repair process, which I know has caused major inconvenience whilst United Utilities have completed the necessary work.”

Mark Hatton, who led the Keep Thirlmere Open campaign, said people "can once again enjoy the peaceful, beautiful and safe route along the west side of Thirlmere.”

A spokesperson for United Utilities added: "The Dam Wall Road is currently closed after the council served a permanent closure order on it in 2022 because it is not wide enough for two-way traffic to use safely.

"We will be happy to continue to work together with the council on a solution for this issue too.”