Coatbridge road closed for four weeks

Jan 6 2010 by Gordon Robertson, Airdrie & Coatbridge

Coatbridge road closed for four weeks

COUNCIL chiefs have postponed the closure of a busy Coatbridge road due to the freezing weather conditions.

Woodside Street, which is the main route from Bank Street to Kirkwood and Old Monkland, was scheduled to be shut for four weeks.

The closure was to allow Scottish Gas to carry out “essential gas upgrade work” at a care home.

But the timing of the project – during the worst winter weather in almost 30 years – left residents and drivers angry.

Now the council have seen sense and delayed the work which was meant to have started on Monday, January 5.

A council spokeswoman said: “The works on Woodside Street have been postponed due to current weather conditions. The postponement will last at least a week, after which we will see whether the works can go ahead. We will keep local people as informed as possible.”

North Lanarkshire Council planned to close a 315-metre stretch of Woodside Road from Bank Street to the north and Allan Street to the south.

The council had advised residents to access the area from Whifflet Street for the next four weeks.

The gas main to Woodside Care Home is to be upgraded, with cast-iron pipes being replaced by new polyethylene ones.

A spokesman said: "Scotland Gas Networks will be carrying out essential gas upgrade work in Woodside Street, Coatbridge. The £25,000 project is necessary to upgrade the gas main supplying the care home in the area."

Residents told the Advertiser they were unhappy at the proposed timing of the closure.

Mary McCabe, from Kirkwood’s Banners Store, said: “My husband will take longer to get to and from the wholesalers. The road’s already been shut before due to the same problem and it affected business.”

Margaret Brown from Mitchell Street said: “It will affect me as I have to take my grandson to nursery every day in Langloan.”

Debbie Docherty added: “My partner uses this road to drive to work every day so he’s not too happy.”

Yesterday, John Lynch, who runs the Monklands Online website and lives in the area, said: “January is always the worst month in this country for weather so this should have been delayed from the start.

“This is the main artery route in the area and the quickest and easiest way out so it shouldn’t have been agreed in the first place to close it at this time of year.

“I was gobsmacked when I was able to drive down there today so it seems as if there’s been a bit of common sense used.”