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County Council has responded to criticism from residents in and around Melton's Thorpe Road area following the news that the road will be closed for 8 days for roadworks.
As we reported last week Thorpe Road is set to close from Monday 4th March to Tuesday 12th March for drainage works and vehicle access to the new housing development on the site of the former Melton Hospital.
The road is set to be closed from the junction with Norman Way up to the junction with Beechwood Avenue according to roadwork maps.
The current entrance to the new housing development on Thorpe Road. Photo: NEMM
Residents commenting on our story were concerned about the upcoming closure after the nightmare they went through when Severn Trent closed the road in December 2022.
One resident said: "A disaster waiting to happen, I understand the work needs doing but I really hope proper plans are put in place to avoid the carnage residents put up with last year. Apart from one councillor [sic] who is always helpful, every other organisation/ representative I contacted regarding the closure last year just completely washed their hands of it all. HGVs need adequate signage well in advance informing them of the closure and offering a safe well sign posted route. It is not acceptable to just let them bomb down thorpe road [sic] and then find it's closed. I still have the photos of the poor attempt at signage for last year's closure, let's hope lessons are learnt."
Many people in the area were reporting how their cars were damaged as a result of the closure and many HGVs getting stuck due to poor signage.
Another resident said: "Why not doing it in half term!!!!"
A spokesperson for Leicestershire County Council, said: “The upcoming road closure in the Melton, Thorpe Road area is on behalf of Snowdon Homes for a housing development.
“As the local highway authority, we work to ensure there are no road closure clashes, and this work has been scheduled in at the most appropriate time taking into consideration other necessary work on the road network in the locality.
“A clearly signposted official diversion route will be implemented onto the National Highways network that HGV’s can use, with temporary weight limit restrictions being put in place on Melton Spinney Road, and we encourage road users in the area to follow this to minimise disruption.”
It's also been confirmed that the diversion will allow access to Tesco and Melton Hospital.
Snowdon Homes have been approached for comment.