Ref. 28045-23PEOPLE living on Prior's Hill in Wroughton face a double helping of misery as contractors are poised to dig up their road twice in the space of a month.

Swindon Council workers are this week due to dig up the road for urgent repair work and resurfacing. In the New Year gas company Transco will do exactly the same thing when they turn up to repair a gas main.

The news comes a week after the Advertiser revealed the council could appoint a roads tsar to oversee a strict timetable of work and fine firms that breach prearranged timetables, to ensure utility companies do not dig up roads without warning.

But for those living in Prior's Hill that announcement has come too late to prevent Christmas disruption.

Retired Ron Herring, 68, of Prior's Hill, said: "The road is so narrow in places I think they'll have to completely close it off. It all seems a bit shambolic and without co-ordination at the moment a roads tsar would be good.

"We have received no notification of the council's resurfacing work. I only found out when I drove down the hill and saw the signs and the work was scheduled to start 12-hours later. I rang the council, but nobody called me back."

People living in Wroughton have already had to stomach six months of roadworks, temporary traffic lights and disruption on the High Street.

In a letter to Prior's Hill residents Transco operations manager Allan Paul said: "As part of Transco's responsibility to ensure a continuing safe and secure gas supply system in your area, work will be starting shortly in Prior's Hill the project is scheduled to start between January 5 and February 4.

"Clearly it is impossible to carry out this essential work without some disruption and I apologise for any inconvenience caused, but I can assure you that every effort will be made to keep this to a minimum."

In the past year the roadworks hotspots have included work by Transco on Drakes Way and Great Western Way, and Cricklade Street in Old Town, which was closed for ten-weeks earlier this year for gas main replacements and cable duct laying.

Swindon Council spokesman Gavin Calthrop said: "Work at Prior's Hill is part of the council's annual programme of maintenance works and consists of urgently required repairs to selected roads, which are in poor condition.

"Work is scheduled to take three days and Swindon Council is fully aware of the work scheduled to be undertaken by Transco on Prior's Hill in January, but this does not affect the work taking place at the moment.

"The council has in fact modified the finish point of its current road maintenance works so that there is no overlap with the Transco scheme, so avoiding unnecessary duplication of work."

Giles Sheldrick