Vehicles obstruct workmen in Worthing - giving council two options

Contractors laying a new surface in Cranleigh Road last week had to work around a parked van, which had failed to move despite residents being given plenty of notice.

Another photo, taken in Balcombe Avenue today (Monday, May 2) told a very similar story, with a car, this time, causing an obstruction.

On both occasions, the council workmen continued to resurface the roads – leaving only the section of the roads where the vehicles were parked.

A spokesperson for West Sussex County Council said: “When carrying out large-scale roadworks such as this, we rely on the co-operation and assistance of drivers and the wider public in helping us ensure the road is clear of parked vehicles and other obstructions.

"To aid with this, works information and ‘no parking’ signs are erected on site and information letters are delivered to local residents and businesses in advance of the works."

The county council said the work on Balcombe Avenue is ‘currently still ongoing’ so there is ‘a chance that the car will move in time for the work to be completed’.

"However, if it does not move in time our contractor will be returning at the end of their current works programme, which is currently anticipated to be in early to mid-June, to finish any incomplete areas such as this,” the spokesperson said.

The council said its workforce will ‘routinely work with residents’ during the works to ‘remove any remaining obstructions’ – and ensure the road ‘remains as clear as possible throughout the work’.

“Despite these efforts, we do occasionally encounter vehicles which haven’t been moved,” the spokesperson said.

"We do not have the authority to physically remove these vehicles, the options are to either abandon the works or work around the obstruction, with the latter almost always being the option taken as is the case here.”

The council’s contractor will return at the end of their current works programme to ‘finish any incomplete areas’. ‘No parking’ signs and cones will be placed out in the affected areas in advance of this return visit to minimise the chance the area will be blocked again, the council said.

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