The start of work next month to replace a section of Alston’s historic cobbles could be seen as cause for celebration following a community campaign to get them reinstated, but there are fears the road diversion for the work is unsafe.
Dave Liquorice, of campaign group Save Alston Front Street, said the town’s cobbles were taken out in late 2018 because of concerns over safety and a petition was started to ask Cumbria County Council to put them back.
Work to reinstate the cobbles on a 30m section of Front Street in Alston, at a cost of £500,000, will now begin on Monday August 2.
Mr Liquorice said although the replaced cobbles could be seen as “not much more than a glorified speed trap” – being only a small bit of the 200m stretch which existed before – it would still tidy up what is at the moment a “complete mess” of cobbles and tarmac patches.
Carlisle-based firm Cubby Construction has been selected as the contractor to carry out the work and the stone which will be used will come from nearby Alston Quarry.
The county council has worked closely with the Alston Front Street steering group to progress the project.
Recognising the importance of the business community and residents’ involvement in the construction phase, a sub-group of local business and community representatives was established to ensure that Alston will be promoted and celebrated as “open for business” throughout the work.
However, a local businessman has spoken of his worries about a major road diversion, which he claims could put the safety of drivers at risk.
Gary Wright, managing director of Wrights Bros. Coaches Ltd, is extremely concerned about the condition of the B6294 (Blagill loop) road, which will serve as the diversion away from Alston town centre for up to six months.
He believes this road is highly unsuitable because of the poor condition it is in.
The August start date for the closure of Front Street, the only road through the the town of Alston, is four months later than originally planned and fears exist that it could take up to six months to reinstate the cobbles.
Mr Wright says the narrow diversionary route is “not fit for purpose” without a serious upgrade and claims that parts are in disrepair already, even before months of continuous use by HGVs and other traffic which would normally use the main road through Alston.
“Cumbria County Council has claimed that a lot of work has been carried out on the B6294 diversion road to improve safety”, said Mr Wright. However, I have seen very little work carried out to ensure the road is safe for it’s proposed use.”
A county council spokesman said the work was expected to be completed by the end of November and it is a legal requirement that the signed diversion route has to be the same classification as the road which is closed.
These suggestions include that Cumbria County Council clearly signpost the ‘passing places’ along the diversion, as other councils have done.
“When that road was last used as the main diversionary route people were parking in these ‘passing places’ thinking they were lay-bys. This idea was rejected with ‘too much red tape’ given to me as the reason.”
Another suggestion of Mr Wright’s is to cut a number of trees back around the blind bends in this narrow road so that drivers are able to have a clearer view of oncoming vehicles.
Mr Wright claims that part of the retaining wall above Foreshield is collapsing and will not withstand months of heavy traffic.
He has sent Cumbria County Council various photographs of the current condition, which show a serious state of disrepair with stones already lying on the side of the road and trees precariously balanced with little ground support. In Mr Wright’s opinion the volume of traffic that will be using this road may cause the wall to collapse, bringing down trees and potentially a landslide of earth from the upward sloping fields beyond.
Mr Wright maintains that the closure of Alston Front Street should not be permitted until an independent safety assessment is carried out of the B6294.
He said: “The diversion via the Blagill Loop Road (B6294) has never been a suitable route for heavy traffic as it is single carriageway in places and if large vehicles meet speeding cars and motorbikes it will result in accidents.
“Just recently the B6294 had to closed to traffic because of a collapsed culvert, which caused a large hole to open up in the road. This is the second time this has happened recently. Who is to say it won’t happen again while Front Street is closed? The County Council need to address these risks urgently”.
Mr Wright has also highlighted the detrimental effect it could have to Alston shops, cafes and businesses, just as they are feeling the benefits of the relaxing of lockdown guidelines.
He points out that when work was done on the test panel in 2020, temporary traffic lights were used, creating a one-way system along that section of Front Street.
He has asked council officers why that can’t be repeated, but to date he has not received a response.
The introduction of the successful monthly Alston market in May has been one of the major projects of this group and is held on the last Saturday of each month.
As restrictions following the COVID pandemic continue to ease, it is vital to ensure that visitors and locals alike are aware of the project, and that the town’s businesses and local economy are able to thrive throughout.
The county council will continue to work closely with the steering group and local community to ensure disruption is kept to a minimum, and that people across the wider region are informed about the town remaining open for business during the reinstatement works.
Liaison officers from Cubby Construction will be contacting local traders soon to discuss how the road closure may affect them and offer support and advice.
The complexity of the proposed surface and subgrade mean this work will take longer than a standard road reconstruction using tarmac — which takes only a few days.
Factors, including weather (particularly rain), also come into play.
The laying of stone setts is a specialist skill and the stonemasons from Cubby Construction will liaise with the original team who installed the trial panels in 2020, to discuss how the stone “worked”.
The council will also take this opportunity to deliver other minor repairs to parking areas and pavements to reduce disruption.
Claire Driver, Cumbria county councillor for Alston and East Fellside said: “I am delighted to see the work on Front Street to reinstate our beloved and famous cobbles finally about to begin.
“It’s taken a huge amount of work to get to this stage and I’d like to thank the community for their continued support and patience as well as officers from the county council for their continued enthusiasm.
“The work will require a full road closure with traffic needing to be diverted via the Blagill Loop.
“I am pleased that Cubby Construction will be liaising closely with the council and steering group, and that by working together with local businesses and residents, we will ensure that disruption is kept to a minimum and that businesses in Alston are actively promoted as remaining open to visitors throughout this exciting work.”
