'Roadworks have hit our trade harder than Covid'

Disruption from major roadworks and traffic diversions is badly hitting traders in a Lancashire town, who claim it is costing them thousands of pounds in the run-up to Christmas.

Main roads in Nelson are seeing new junctions, pedestrian crossings, cycle routes and other utility work as part of the Accessible Nelson and Nelson Town Deal transport and regeneration schemes.

Some business owners are angry at the impact and timing, arguing elements such as new cycleways are unnecessary and claiming there was little or no consultation.

Lancashire County Council and Pendle Council, which are involved in the schemes, said the works will improve traffic and pedestrian flow and boost public spaces.

Kevin Schofield of Schofield Butchers on Scotland Road told Local Democracy Reporting Service: "I'm £3,000 down on what I should be this month."

He added: "For the first time ever, I've had to throw meat away.

"Customers are having difficulty finding parking spaces or being put off coming to Nelson by the traffic queues.

"People aren't going to come here if it takes 25 minutes to get through traffic lights. It's the same for the fish and chip shop next door."

Amir Khan from AH Interiors furniture shop said: "Our sales are down £130,000 in recent weeks. Yet they seem to think a 30-year-old business like ours can simply survive all this?

"The streets are clogged. We thought the work and investment was focused on the town centre. But nobody consulted us on this. It's as if the pot of funding is there, so it's got to be spent."

Ikram Sharif, part-owner of Super Autosaver, said: "The Covid pandemic was easier on us than these road works.

"It's affecting our deliveries of stock, meaning we haven't always got the items to sell.

Lola McEvoy, operations manager at Star Print, which has only had an office on Scotland Road for a few months, said: "We thought we'd move to this new location and customers would be able to park for a bit longer. But then a lot of the local parking spaces were closed, so it feels quite frustrating."

A Lancashire County Council spokeswoman said: "We recognise that roadworks can be disruptive for businesses, particularly at this time of year, and we're working hard to minimise the impact.

"We are actively monitoring disruption and have plans in place to help ease congestion in the run up to the Christmas period.

"If businesses have specific concerns, we encourage them to contact us directly so we can look into the issues."

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