Villagers fear collapsing road will never reopen
BBCResidents fear one of the main roads to their village will never reopen after waiting more than three years for progress.
The C31 into Hamsterley, near Bishop Auckland, was fenced off after part of the surface collapsed into the River Wear in January 2023, leading to road diversions.
Resident Marc Shepherd said every six months villagers were told work was ongoing "but nothing ever happens".
Mark Readman, Durham County Council's head of highway services, said the authority understood how frustrated residents were and officials were "continuing to explore all options for the road".
He said drone footage of the scene showed the "subsidence" was "significant" and it was an "incredibly complex issue to resolve".
Reform county councillor Robert Potts said he had been told the council's cabinet would make a decision on the future of the road soon.
He said: "The reality is the river has caused significant damage to the road, in areas the riverbank has been eroded under the road, with the river believed to be physically running under the road at points, when in full flow.
"I still hope the reopening of the C31 is possible, however if it is not viable I will be consulting with the parish council and residents and asking for a number of improvements to be made to the current routes into the village."
Resident Andy Richardson said the continued closure of the C31 was "adding time and expense" on to local residents.
There are four main roads out of the village and with the ongoing work at Wolsingham Bridge, residents have been following long diversions.
Richardson said: "The continued long term closure of the C31 and the use of the 4.5mile (7.2km) diversion route is adding time and expense on to local residents' journeys.
"Linburn Beck Bridge is a pinch point on the diversion with HGVs having to cross in the centre of the narrow carriageway.
"This is not a long term resilient and sustainable route and there have been several near miss incidents on this narrow bridge."
Shepherd said residents had had "no news" and he questioned whether it would ever reopen.
"The road is just slowly falling towards the bank, all of the road is going to be compromised," he said.
