High Street and Arcade roadworks are defended

Businesses have complained about declining footfall since Guernsey Electricity started digging up part of the High Street and Commercial Arcade to make improvements to the low-voltage network.

David De Lisle, who has an interest in a business in Town, criticised the timing of the works, which started on 8 April and are expected to last another eight to 10 weeks.

‘I would like to know what considerations led the committee to permit those works at this time of year when the Town is supposed to be free of obstruction and disruption to pedestrian flow and access to provide the very best impression and offering to visitors to the island,’ said Deputy De Lisle.

Deputy de Sausmarez acknowledged the inconvenience caused to businesses and pedestrians but asked the States to understand that her committee was in a ‘no-win situation’, because there was never a good time for roadworks in busy areas.

‘If we tried to do all roadworks over a month or two in the shoulder seasons, we wouldn’t have enough people to do that work and the island would grind to a halt,’ she said.

‘We have got an incredible volume of work which needs to be done. This is a side effect of investment in infrastructure.

‘Looking at social media, I sometimes get the impression that people think we just go digging up roads for fun.

‘Nothing could be further from the truth.

‘There is a huge amount of co-ordination to reduce the number of times any road is dug up and to make those times as short as possible.’

Deputy de Sausmarez said the work being carried out would support businesses, including retailers, by improving the capacity and resilience of the electricity network.