FURIOUS Liberal Democrat councillors in Pershore have called for Persimmon Homes to be hit in the pocket after a ‘summer of chaos’ on Station Road.
Coun Dan Boatright and Coun Charles Tucker want the developer fined and highways contractor employed by Persimmon to be fined and banned from accessing the highway after ‘repeated failures’ by the company to follow the rules.
The month-long closure of Station Road in August follows a series of summer road closures on Station Road which have been ‘disruptive and marked by a complete disregard for the public’, according to the councillors.
Both Coun Boatright and Coun Tucker said residents felt unsafe when accessing the footpaths near the works and were ‘continually’ woken early by Persimmon starting work before the permitted time of 8am.
“The complete and utter disrespect this developer has for our community is apparent for all to see,” Coun Boatright said.
“I have repeatedly made contact with management at Persimmon and explained the issues on the ground. I either receive false platitudes or they try to blame others.
“Meanwhile residents have been woken ridiculously early by heavy machinery and workmen shouting, and anyone trying to walk or cycle down Station Road has had to navigate around machinery and holes in the ground that were open and unsafe.
“To make matters worse several of the activities on the site were unnecessary and should not have been carried out in the first place.
“A huge thank you to all residents who have helped us build the evidence we needed for the enforcement team and highways.
“We will continue to push for fines and bans until Persimmon gets the point and starts playing by the rules,” the county councillor added.
Coun Tucker added: “Enforcement needs to be simpler, quicker and make developers stick to the rules.
“Back in January we finally saw the county council make use of the law and ban a contractor from the highway for six months after the disruption they caused in Eckington.”
However in response, Persimmon told the Observer: “These works were carried out during the school summer holiday period to minimise disruption in conjunction with Worcestershire County Council.
“These works were six months in the planning stage which also included a consultation evening for the public so we could share the schedule of works and answer any questions.
“The road was closed for a period of four weeks whilst our contractors worked hard to ensure the works were completed within the agreed timescale.
“Highways work is permitted from 7am until 9pm but this work did involve us moving machinery from our site to Station Road.
“Residents safety is of paramount importance to us which is why we created diversion paths whilst the works were being carried out.”
