St Osyth: Residents repair road themselves

From the archive, first published Thursday 12th Apr 2007.

Fed-up residents who have been campaigning for road improvements for more than 20 years have fixed their potholed road themselves.

Residents in Oakmead Road, off Point Clear Road, St Osyth, were out in force to concrete a 60-metre stretch of the road.

The group had campaigned to have the road improved, but the private road remained unadopted and local authorities refused to take responsibility.

Dozens of residents turned out to help, including children and pensioners, as well as local builder Shaun Spacey, of SAS Groundwork and Building, who lives in the road.

A spokesman for the group said: "The work was much needed because potholes in the road were quite hazardous and were damaging cars.

"It was dreadful down there in the winter, and really dusty in the summer.

Residents clubbed together to raise more than £8,000 for the work, and they now plan to put speed humps in the road.

A spokesman for Essex County Council, which is responsible for highway maintenance, said the council did not help with improvements to Oakmead Road because, as an unadopted private road, it was not the council's responsibility to maintain it.