MORE traders around Wey-mouth have reacted with fury to council claims that businesses were consulted about this Easter’s Town Bridge closure plans.

Dorset County Council has U-turned on a decision to stop bridge refurbishment work during the Easter holidays.

The local authority changed its plans to avoid ‘traffic confusion’ and said traders had been consulted and agreed with this decision as their businesses were ‘running smoothly with the diversion in place’.

This statement has been met with uproar by local businesses as the Echo initially reported yesterday.

Not one trader we spoke to had been consulted by the council and more have been speaking out about the decision.

Crown Hotel manager Andrew Lamont said: “I object to the fact the council are saying they’ve consulted with traders. It’s just not true.

“No one from the council has said a word to me and I’ve spoken with about 12 traders in the area and none of them have been consulted either.

“For the council to say that the works haven’t affected trade is wrong.

“It has affected our bar and lunchtime trade, we’re doing incentives to try and get business back but the fall-off from day one for our business has been dramatic.

“And we’re not entitled to compensation as it’s remedial work.”

He added: “I’d like to know who the council has spoken to about this new decision.

“On Monday someone from the council sneaked in and put a letter on my desk about the bridge being closed at Easter, then disappeared.

“We had arranged with the council that we would talk to customers and inform coach parties that there would be works happening before and after Easter, that was fine.

“But we weren’t prepared for this. The main bus hub is outside our hotel and all the trade from passengers having a drink and something to eat while they’re waiting has stopped.

“The upheaval is unbelievable.

“There’s cars parked all over the place and no one seems to be managing it.”

Rowland Foote of Rowland’s Patisserie in St Thomas Street said he was not consulted on the move.

He said: “The bridge being closed, and staying closed for Easter, is an absolute disaster.

“It’s killing my business.

“Trade is down 50 per cent because there are no buses coming this way and there’s no footfall.

“Now we’ve got a petrol crisis so I can’t see many people coming for Easter, it’s a double whammy.”

Works 'not as bad as feared'

DORSET County Council has apologised to traders for the lack of notification but said ‘on balance’ the Easter works would minimise disruption.

John Burridge, chief engineer for Dorset County Council bridge management and structures, said: “When deciding whether to continue the Town Bridge closure over Easter, we spoke to Weymouth and Portland Borough Council to make sure that no events would be affected.

“We also contacted some of the traders who had expressed concerns before the project began about the impact of the bridge closure on local businesses.

“While we didn’t speak to every business, the feedback we had was that the work had so far not caused as many problems as they’d anticipated.

“In addition, while the works have taken place there have been no written complaints from businesses in the area.

“Traders in the area received letters on Monday explaining the change to the original plans and the reasons behind the decision.

“We apologise if some businesses feel they should have been notified earlier.

“However we feel that – on balance – keeping the bridge closed to traffic over Easter will avoid traffic disruption in the town centre and also help us to ensure the bridge refurbishment is completed on schedule.”