Dorset Council says it is doing all it can to resolve traffic problems at Sherborne – caused by damage to an Acreman Street house wall in an accident in February.

The A30 is now partially open after a 10-week closure, although traffic problems continue with temporary traffic lights in operation.

Cllrs Jon Andrews and Matt Hall said in a statement to Dorset Council: “The public naturally are exasperated as to why this issue has taken so long to fix as we are now into the ninth month.”

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Cllr Andrews said the reduction in the route had caused extreme disruption to residents and businesses as the road is one of only two east-west, forcing many vehicles onto narrow streets through the town.

Cllr Andrews says that nearby junction improvement works at Newell/Marston Road are now also likely to be extended rather than finished by the mid to end of October as planned.

He said the delays there has been caused by the electricity company being unable to quickly move a 11,000Volt underground cable which was likely to delay the road improvement works beyond the mid-November expected finish date. The cable had been discovered in August during work on the Marston Road improvements and had not been where it was expected to be according to plans provided by the SSEN power company.

Highways portfolio holder Cllr Ray Bryan says the council has done all it can to speed up the process over the damaged wall and has engaged with the landowner to find a long-term solution although rebuilding the structure had turned out to be “a complex and extremely technical task” with only a limited number of contractors able to do the work.

“I can confirm that officers and myself have been in continual dialogue with the owners of the property since the unfortunate accident which damaged the wall … I can assure colleagues and the residents of Sherborne that we are and seeking a resolution as quickly as possible,” he said.

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Cllr Bryan said that the 18-month traffic order to allow the traffic lights and partial road closure, to September 2023, remained in place and had not been extended or changed, despite some local claims that it had.

“It has never been an indication about how long we expect the disruption to last.”

He thanked Cllrs Hall and Andrews for their work in trying to get the problems sorted out and said he was surprised that West Dorset MP Chris Loder had taken to social media asking for Cllr Hall’s resignation over the issue.