Business leaders, firms and transport companies have welcomed the news that St Peter’s Bridge has now reopened.
The three-month closure of one of the main routes into Burton has severely impacted on local businesses which have seen shoppers turn away discouraged by gridlocked traffic. But news that it has opened three weeks ahead of schedule has brought joy.
The closure to enable essential repairs was part of a £6.1million project to refurbish St Peter’s Bridge and Burton Bridge.
Burton Bridge will now be repaired next summer after Staffordshire County Council held a consultation with people and businesses to ask when they wanted the work to be carried out.
Now, the people of Burton are celebrating as the bridge reopened to traffic this afternoon, Friday, November 10.
Sue Dorling, managing director at The Alphabet Gift Shop, in Union Street, said: "I am jumping up and down in the office as we speak. We are absolutely delighted.
"It is the best news we have had. I know people were saying at the beginning that they would go elsewhere, such as Tamworth, to shop and not come back so I hope that is no longer the case and they will come back. Burton is great for so many reasons.
"(The closure) wasn’t so bad the first few weeks as the children were still on holiday but it wasn’t until the children went back that it became bad. I think because everyone was worried that there would be traffic that they were almost talked out of coming into Burton.
"So there were a few weeks early on when it was like a ghost town and we are near that end of town so we did notice that it was quite quiet. But gradually people have found their way in again and been told that the traffic isn’t as bad a as expected. I think the opening of Next helped."
James Weeks, owner of The Dial bar and restaurant, in Station Street, is hoping for a big celebration which will end the misery for local businesses.
He said: "This is the best news since the birth of my children. We just need the council to shout about it now - I have asked for some Red Arrows, hot air balloons and banners so I will see what they say.
"I have asked East Staffordshire Borough Council for some free parking in the town until the next bridge closure, and the county council has said it will review its parking. If the parking charges were listed it will give Burton a big leap which it what it needs.
"It is fantastic. I will be expecting every business will be breathing a sigh of relief that hopefully this nightmare is over. The amount of businesses I have spoken to that are at their wits end.
"The real damage won’t be felt until January when the bills come out so we will probably see a few to-let signs go up. The bridge has been closed for nearly a quarter of the year."
Earlier last month an urgent meeting hosted by the Burton and district Chamber of Commerce was held with local businesses who said they were on their knees due to the closure.
Simon Chapman, president of the Chamber of Commerce, said: "The chamber is delighted about the early reopening of the bridge, and we would like to thank all of those involved for bringing relief to the town.
"The bridge reopening will bring much needed relief to the town at a vital time of year and we look forward to see the traffic flow around the town as normal.
"It is vital that we ask residents of the area to support the traders in Burton to show that they value their presence in the town and ask them to come back and support the local business community."
It had been predicted that Tesco, which is based on St Peter’s Bridge, would also be severely affected. However, a spokesman for the store said this wasn’t the case, and instead simply said it was open for business. The spokesman said: "We’re happy to confirm that our Burton superstore is open and serving our customers as usual."
East Staffordshire Borough Council previously said it had also been affected and Councillor Richard Grosvenor, leader of the council, said today: "I am pleased that businesses and residents at long last have some welcome and surprise news with the announcement confirming the rumours that were circulating from Thursday evening on social media."
Bus passengers will also be given a boost. While the timetable changes will remain in place tonight, they will revert back to normal tomorrow morning.
Keith Myatt, head of business development at Midland Classic, said: "We are naturally pleased that the bridge is opening ahead of the proposed reopening date as it means our buses can return to their normal timetables and journey times reduced for our passengers.
"To celebrate and to encourage people to travel into Burton, customers can save money with Midland Classic’s fare bonanza on Saturday, November 18 and Sunday, November 19, with all adult single fares at just £1 along with child/student single fares priced at 50p."
The two men who secured the initial £6.1 million funding for both St Peter’s Bridge and Burton Bridge have also welcomed the news.
Councillor Conor Wileman, who represents Burton Tower on the county council, said: "I am absolutely delighted that the bridge will be open. The bridge has been shut for far too long but I am very pleased that the workforce on the bridge have got on with the job in tricky weather conditions and have been able to bring the opening date forward by three weeks. It is brilliant for the Christmas period for Burton’s businesses."
Burton MP Andrew Griffiths said he understood the frustration of motorists and businesses alike but said that the bridge work had to be done to ensure its future.
He said: "People across Burton will not just be breathing a sigh of a relief but celebrating that the bridgework has been completed sooner than expected.
"The bridge work was vital but I understand it had a massive impact on local commuters and businesses in the town.
"Now that it has been opened ahead of schedule I want to encourage everyone to make the effort to come into the town, to do some shopping, have a pint and go for a meal and support these businesses who had been badly affected by the closure.
"I do genuinely understand why people were so frustrated."
The project has involved bearing replacement work on St Peter’s Bridge, meaning HGVs and buses can continue to access the town in the future. Waterproofing and resurfacing has also taken place. Without these vital improvements, the council has said that lorries and buses would not be able to use the bridge by 2019 and it would eventually have had to be closed.
Mark Deaville, the county council’s cabinet member with overall responsibility for the scheme, said: "From the outset we have been determined to ensure St Peter’s Bridge is open again as soon as possible. Thanks to some efficient management of the project and a spell of good weather we have managed to bring forward the opening by nearly three weeks.
"This repair work has been complex and it was vital that we carried it out as soon as we knew we had received the funding from the Government.
"We’d again like to thank people and businesses for their patience while this essential work was carried out. We will continue to spread the message that Burton is very much open for business."
