Jersey retailer blames roadworks for 50% drop in sales

BBC News

2 days ago

Business owners on Jersey's east coast say a six-week roadwork scheme could have been planned for a different time of year to reduce disruption.Sarah Donati-Ford, owner of the Green Island Village Store, said the shop had been "completely cut off" by the barriers and her takings had halved."We do need the road done and I'm all for it," said Ms Donati-Ford. "But maybe it could have been done overnight or at a different time of year. Not during the summer.""This is the busiest time for us. We've not been able to get into the shop, for five days it's going to be. We're dropping our sales by over 50% or 60% a day and we've still got our overheads to pay and cover."
Restauranteur Alan Winch, who runs Green Island Restaurant, agreed the work needed to be done but said the timing could have been better."The road's not been resurfaced for a good 20 years and they're telling me it'll last another 20 years once this is done, so that's a positive."
"However, I think the time of year they've chosen to do it, during the school holidays, the middle of the summer, a main artery from the east to the west, is probably not the right choice in my view."I would've chosen a different time - autumn or winter to have done this work."Part of La Grande Route de la Cote in St Clement has been partially closed for six weeks to allow £1.5m of road improvements.The Infrastructure and Environment Department said the road would be closed to traffic from 07:30 to 21:00 BST Monday to Friday, with the aim of reopening to the public over the weekend.The Minister for Infrastructure, Constable Andy Jehan, has defended the timing."There's a huge amount of planning goes into it," he said. "The whole works will take some six weeks so the school holidays were deemed the best time to do it because of the reduction in traffic due to that period of time."
But some residents said they have no problems with the works. Brenda Sprent said "it would have been a nuisance if I did not know. It is a little bit of an inconvenience but I am fit and healthy and I can walk."Geoffrey Pirouet said the work had helped entertain his family."We had our grandson here on Monday, when we had big diggers, huge lorries and enormous trucks," he said. "He was just absolutely enthralled. The men all waved at him so it's been brilliant." But Frank Pilnick sad the work was "dragging on and on". "You have to speak to people to see if you can get in and out of your estate and they are pretty co-operative but it just seem that nobody knows what the left hand or the right hand is doing," he said.
The roadworks and the complaints are not limited to St Clement. In the northern parish of Trinity, the owner of the village store says business has been affected by four different sets of works in less than three years and asked for a bigger gap between works."Could it be delayed?" Bernie Le Sueur said. "Could they do it next summer, because this is island-wide works they're doing, and do another parish? Do another road? Just give this shop a break to try and get back on its feet, to get a little reserve in the pot - and they said no," she said.She said it was "extremely likely" her business was going to close permanently.
A resident who has two disabled children said the diversions are adding significant time and distance to his daily commute.Rory Steel has to take his children to the west of the island every day and believes the diversions could have been shorter."It's the lack of joined up thinking," he said. "This, we believe, could have been brought forward. "If it couldn't have been brought forward, what alternatives were there to routes around this area? It cannot be a 26km there and back detour. "It's ridiculous."The Infrastructure Department has been contacted about the roadworks in Trinity.