Latest data shows roads most impacted by works

Victoria Road in St Peter Port is the route that has been most impacted by road closures and traffic management in Guernsey since 2020.

Data from the States, revealed in response to a Freedom of Information request, shows the top 10 roads impacted by works are all in St Peter Port, with Victoria Road impacted 284 times.

Ian Vaudin from Donkey Taxis said roadworks have been "really painful" over the past few years and impacted his profits.

Head of Travel and Transport Implementation Laura Oxburgh said: "No-one likes roadworks, but they are necessary and we benefit from the works that they enable."

The data from the States tracks every time signage was needed on the road, including closure, parking suspension and roadworks.

Vaudin said: "We actually make slightly less money because it's on how many journeys you really do up to the airport.

"If we're caught in traffic, it's going to take us a lot longer to get back to the place we want to go to.

"We can only take so many jobs in a day if we have that many road closures."

Clinton Millard's motorcycle business, Millard & Co Ltd, is on Victoria Road.

He said the number of closures on and around the road "very well could" have an impact on his business takings.

"Trade does slow down on the weeks that say when there's a road closed," he said.

"People still find a way into us, but it's just obviously those dedicated ones - if their batteries died they'll need to come to us or if they've booked a job in they're going to find a way into us - but it might just affect their day as well sadly."

Vaudin said he "wasn't shocked" by the data.

"As you can see almost all of those roads are in town and that's where our major problem is," he said.

He said much of his work involved transporting businesspeople and tourists to hotels, adding "if all the roads are getting closed at the same time then we can't get into town very easily and we can't get out of town very easily and that has an impact on our customers."

He said he felt clearer communication from the States would ease the impact, and there were ways to increase efficiency.

"I think actually closing roads and multiple services using that closure at the same time would be great."

Oxburgh said: "Our focus is on ensuring that these works are co-ordinated and that those carrying them out communicate with businesses that are affected to mitigate any impact as far as possible."

Additional reporting by the BBC England Data Unit.

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