Concern as Whitchurch Bridge works begin
The 111-year-old Whitchurch Bridge, which is used by nearly 6,000 vehicles on a typical working day, closed for £4.3m worth of repairs last Thursday.
A temporary footbridge is in place for pedestrians, buggies, pushed bicycles and small motorbikes during the closure.
Residents have been bracing themselves for the expected “carmageddon” as a series of parking restrictions and diversions are imposed on Goring and Streatley during the six- month closure.
Traffic was monitored by @GoringStreatley who tweeted that traffic in Lower Basildon to Streatley was “consistently bad morning and evening”.
Although the level of traffic had increased in surrounding villages, Pangbourne was relativley car free, fueling concerns from businesses that the closure would have an impact on trade.
A member of the family-run Grey’s Cheeses in Pangbourne, Lizzy Grey, said that traffic in the village had been non-existent on the day of the closure.
“It’s dead. We can’t believe it. It’s very quiet in the shops and we are very worried. We’re very concerned as we have not had a single customer from Whitchurch yet. It seems dire at the moment, but it’s early days.”
Miss Grey said that signs that put up to alert people of the closure were giving the wrong signal to motorists and diverting them out of Pangbourne.
“The signs are saying that the bridge is closed and we think this is stopping people coming to Pang
bourne. We think there should be signs up saying that we are open for business as usual.”
The manager of Garlands Organic, Abi Thorne, said that trade had been quieter than usual but that the bridge closure could not be held entirely responsible.
Businesses in Pangbourne are planning to hold a Christmas event with extended trading hours to attract shoppers to the village.
West Berkshire Council’s executive for Highways, Pamela Bale, (Con, Pangbourne) said that the village roads were quieter and that she had spoken to highways officers to see whether the wording on diversion signs could be amended.
The Whitchurch Bridge is scheduled to reopen on April 14 next year.