Express & Star

Broken boardwalk in Rugeley blocked off due to safety concerns

An "eyesore" broken boardwalk in Rugeley has been removed due to health and safety reasons.

Published
The broken boardwalk in Rugeley

The footpath, which links Brook Square and Albion Street, was closed in October last year after part of it collapsed.

Opposition Conservative councillors called on the leader of Cannock Chase District Council to act in July.

And now council bosses have come forward to fence off the area to make it safe for pedestrians.

Councillor Gordon Alcott, deputy leader and town centre regeneration portfolio leader, said: “We have taken the advice of specialist consultants and have made the area safe by removing the existing boardwalk structure.

“We are keen to look forward and I have asked officers to commission specialists to progress the necessary technical work to come up with design options for a replacement scheme which will re-establish this pedestrian link.”

Work has been undertaken to remove the structure, with fencing and a lockable gate put in place.

It comes after a joint-letter from opposition councillors, led by leader Olivia Lyons, called for repair work to be undertaken as "soon as possible" – with the closure affecting residents and visitors to the town.