Wistow: Rural traders hit by months of roadwork 'chaos'

Traders Rachael Higham, Adrian Ward and Sue Suffolk said they had been badly affected by the roadworks

Traders at a Leicestershire shopping centre have said their customers are being driven away by a series of long-running road closures.

Businesses at the Wistow Rural Centre, near Kibworth Harcourt, said work to elevate nearby rail bridges, as part of the electrification of the Midland Mainline, had affected them for a year.

The struggling traders said they feared they might not survive.

Network Rail apologised for the disruption.

It is hoped the Newton Lane Bridge will reopen in March

The company closed Station Road, between Wistow and Great Glen, in February 2023 to do work on a bridge.

It was able to reopen the road in October but it then had to be shut again, by Leicestershire County Council, in December when a van crashed into another bridge on the stretch.

Newton Lane, between Wistow and Wigston, has also been closed since October for Network Rail work.

Adrian Ward, the owner of the Inner Wolf shop at the centre, said: "We currently have two of the key roads to Wistow closed.

"It has been chaos for a year. It has just been so hard for shoppers to get to us.

"The work has taken so long and the diversions are atrocious."

Councillor Ozzy O'Shea said both bridges would reopen as soon as possible

Sue Suffolk runs two shops at the centre, Outer Space and Utopia, and said she estimated the roadworks had halved footfall to her businesses.

Rachael Higham, owner of Akiko boutique, said: "People will only come so far, then they see the diversions and they just give up.

"We need to know what's going on and why things have been delayed."

Gavin Crook, Network Rail's principal programme sponsor for Midland Main Line Electrification, said: "We are very sorry for the disruption which the vital bridge work is causing to the local community.

"We know how frustrating this can be and are committed to completing the work as soon as possible."

Ozzy O'Shea, county council cabinet member for highways and transport, said: "Along with Network Rail, we fully understand the concerns of local businesses.

"We're doing all we can to ensure both bridges are reopened as soon as possible."