TRADERS and residents in Old Town are unhappy over the proposed six month closure of a road they claim is vital to business.

Cheryl Deller, 50, who runs the Flower Market, Devizes Road, fears that if builders close off Bradford Road people will be discouraged from shopping there.

Bradford Road will be shut between July 1 and December 31 while construction work is carried out on the former Fads site, where Bloor Homes are building 20 flats with retail units below.

Mrs Deller said: "We'll definitely see a decrease in trade because it will be harder to get to. It doesn't take much to put people off."

Cheryl is also worried about the disruption it will cause to the shop's deliveries. Residents in Ripley Road will have to take a detour along Avenue Road and Bath Road to reach Devizes Road.

Neil Innes, 32, a resident of Ripley Road who works in Wroughton, said: "It will be an inconvenience on my way home because the traffic gets bad enough in Old Town."

Jay Lusty, regional manager for Bloor Homes, said the closure was purely for health and safety reasons. He said that with work due to be carried out on both sides of Bradford Road it would be too dangerous to allow the part of the road by the building site to be left open.

Gavin Calthrop, spokesman for Swindon Borough Council, said: "After two representations from councillors, Swindon Borough Council is reviewing the proposed road closure at Bradford Road."