Road linking towns reopens after seven weeks

Local businesses have suffered due to the road being closed

A busy road linking two market towns has reopened after having being shut for emergency repair work since mid-December.

The A646 Halifax Road between Hebden Bridge and Todmorden was closed due to a damaged sewer, but Calderdale Council confirmed one lane with two-way lights will be open from 06:00 GMT.

One shop owner in Hebden Bridge said that while the news was "good", the one-way system would still mean be a lot of disruption.

The council and Yorkshire Water said in a joint statement they understood "the frustration for all involved", but that the works were hampered by the recent extreme weather and complex repairs.

'Claw back business'

Greg Baker, owner of Craft and Canvas in Hebden Bridge, told the BBC the road closure meant Christmas trade was "appalling" and not helped by the weather.

It had been taking him an hour to do the two-mile journey between his home and work.

"It will be interesting to see how much congestion there is once it does open, because it's only one way", Mr Baker said.

"All the local businesses are pretty much in the same boat and we're seeing that sales have dropped off."

He added: "I can only hope that trade starts to pick up and we can claw back some of the business that we've lost for the last seven weeks that the road was closed."

'Could make it worse'

Paul Jackson, who owns Valley Fuels on Lower Underbank, said he would probably be without access for another six weeks as he needed enough room for large vehicles to come and go.

Currently Mr Jackson has to drive a forklift along a narrow footpath to waiting customers, or even carry fuel to them in a wheelbarrow.

He said he was told he would have access from Thursday morning but was worried it would not be sufficient and too dangerous for larger vehicles.

Mr Jackson added: "It could just make it worse."

The council said the sewer had now been fully repaired and the culvert reinstated.

A lining will be added at a later date and the road re-opened fully.

Greg Baker, owner of Craft and Canvas, said trade has been 'appalling'

A Yorkshire Water spokesperson said: "We would like to thank the team that pulled out all of the stops to get this vital repair fixed as quickly as possible, working long hours in extremely cold and wet conditions."

Public transport has also resumed with the 591 and 592 bus services from Todmorden starting at 06:00 GMT.

The scheduled shuttle bus service, which has been operating for residents on the Todmorden side of Halifax Road, will still operate until 17:00 GMT on 25 January.

Councillor Sarah Courtney, the council's member for regeneration and transport, said: "We absolutely understand that this closure has been frustrating and disruptive and thank people for their patience whilst work has been underway.

"To minimise any further disruption, it's important that there is a clear route through for traffic, also allowing heavy plant access to the site."

She added: "We're asking people not to park on the roadside near the work site and we will be installing no parking signs to this effect."

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