Paving works planned for Maldon High Street have led one of the town's business leaders to speak out about how long they are expected to take.

Chris Tibballs, chairman of the Maldon Chamber of Trade and Commerce, has told Essex County Council three months is too long to replace existing block paving between Silver Street and Maldon police station.

Contractors McAlpine will be replacing the pavement with york stone as part of improvement works, between January 5 and March.

Traffic will be unable to get into the High Street from Fambridge Road and Spital Road for the entire period but Mr Tibballs thinks McAlpine could get the work done in half the time, which would reduce inconvenience to traders.

He said: "I am sure that the shops in that area will be affected because there will be no passing traffic. It seems to us that it is an extremely long duration for the shops to put up with."

A spokesman for Essex County Council said: "We consulted with traders and they came up with January as the best time because it would cause less inconvenience to them."

She added McAlpine could not be more exact about how long the work would take because of the unexpected weather conditions during the works period.

Published Thursday, December 23, 2004

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