THE manager of Newquay BID has said the decision to carry out repair work on Cliff Road on Monday, August 19, “lacked common sense”.

The closure of the road caused traffic disruption to an already bustling town centre and the lack of notice of the repairs taking place caused widespread concern, as well as the lack of clarity on the timescale for when they would be completed.

Newquay BID’s Mark Warren explained to the Voice that the work came as a total surprise as he was not notified that they would be taking place.

“I was walking down to see some shopkeepers and I could see them blocking off the road and asked what they were doing. They said they were fixing the road but even they weren’t sure why they were doing on that day. A lot of the businesses came out to find out what was going on and luckily I was one of the first ones on the scene.

“I was just beside myself, this should not be happening. There was no consultation with myself as the BID Manager, with businesses or the town council, Louis Gardner didn’t even know it was happening. They literally turned up and closed the road, that should not be allowed.”

The initial plan was to close the road up until August 23 for South West Water to complete the permanent repairs, but pressure from local organisations and businesses who objected to it being carried out saw that work postponed until a later date.

Mark explained: “What won the day was the power of everybody coming together and saying, this is not good enough, you don’t close our roads in August. We had several businesses who had got hold of Cornwall Council and SWW, including myself and everybody who has got authority in Newquay.

“We didn’t want them to get away with it and because of that they had to back down on their decision and they filled the hole that they had dug up. I don’t think they realised the reaction they were going to get from businesses and from myself and I believe that is what stopped them.

“Some people would say if they have already started, why not let them get on with it. But if we let them get on with it, it would still be closed by the end of the week. In the end they saw sense but it took a while. When they close a road like that they don’t think about how it not only impacts Cliff Road.

Mark also outlined the problems how a road closure of this nature causes massive inconvenience to local businesses as roads get clogged up across the town centre.

“When roads get closed, we get gridlocks, and everyone starts saying don’t come to Newquay because you’ll be gridlocked which we were and everyone in the town gets affected. I had people tell me it took them an hour and a half for them to get home, it was hours and hours of affected traffic.

“Anything that happens like this should be consulted first, they are legally allowed to do the work but made a mistake. They should come back when traffic volumes are reduced. August is Christmas in Newquay and we should not be messing around with our roads like that without any reasoning behind it.”

As only temporary repairs have been carried out so far, new roadworks will need to be completed at Cliff Road in the near future. South West Water have confirmed to the Voice that it will return to carry out a permanent reinstatement of the road in September at an agreed date with Cornwall Council. It is not yet know when that date will be.

In response to what occurred on Monday, South West Water said Cornwall Council had initially agreed an emergency permit for the company to carry out the work earlier this week but said this was then withdrawn after the work had started.

Cornwall Council have been contacted for response.