Wiltshire Council has apologised after “disruptive” roadworks were carried out without any notice or traffic management plan.

Contractors arrived on Victoria Road in Devizes on Wednesday, August 21, to begin pothole patching which must be completed ahead of a resurfacing project in October.

This surprised residents, who were not notified of the roadworks in advance, and caused traffic issues due to a lack of signage warning the road was blocked.

Wiltshire Council planned for the works to take place but, because of a lack of advance warning and traffic management, its contractors were not authorised to begin by the permit issued.

The project was therefore cut short, and contractors will return between now and October.

Explaining the situation on Facebook, Cllr Iain Wallis told residents the incident had been disruptive.

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He said: “This was of course very disruptive and as residents are aware of resurfacing works later this year they were puzzled as to what was being done.

“The issue was that the works had not been notified and should not have been taking place for this reason.

“They were also not following a traffic management plan which was causing issues for residents and drivers.

“The teams have left and will return in a couple of weeks when the proper permissions are in place so they can finish the work.”

The council has since confirmed its contractor did not carry out the works in accordance with the permit that was issued and apologised for any inconvenience caused.

Cllr Nick Holder, cabinet member for highways, said: “Unfortunately the roadworks on Victoria Road were not undertaken by our contractor in accordance with the permit issued. 

“We appreciate this resulted in some access issues and delays for motorists, and we apologise for any inconvenience caused.

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“As soon as we were made aware of the issue, we contacted our contractor who ceased the works and vacated the site as soon as it was safe to do so.”

The council says it will work to prevent further unexpected roadworks in the future. 

Cllr Holder added: “The patching works will be rescheduled and will follow the correct process, including providing advance notice to residents.

“These works are required to be completed before October when a new micro-asphalt surface is scheduled to be installed.

“We are working with our contractor to ensure all future works follow the conditions of the work permit provided.”

Cllr Wallis also emphasised the pothole patching is “needed and wanted” and urged residents to show understanding towards the teams carrying out the work.