Flood damage repairs in Silsden could cost more than £200,000

• 5:11am Thursday 4th February 2016
• By David Knights
• Photo credit Peter Ford

REPAIRS to a wall and pavement damaged during the Boxing Day floods in Silsden could cost up to £200,000.

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The collapsed wall near the entrance to Aldi supermarket in Keighley Road is just one of three damage sites in the town that need repairs, says a leading councilor.

Adrian Naylor this week highlighted the need for urgent action by public organisations and private landowners in Keighley Road, Bradley Road, and St John’s Street.

He said: “During the floods, there was a great response from the public to deal with the immediate effects.

“It is now time for the other agencies to tell us what progress they have made and what the various timetables are for repairs.”

Cllr Naylor said the stretch of Keighley Road outside Aldi had been hit by the collapse of both a wall and a private bridge over the beck.

He said the bridge’s collapse had caused the pavement to buckle, and Bradford Council engineers feared any further movement of the bridge would cause a collapse of the footpath into the river.

Cllr Naylor added: “Nothing can be done to the pavement until the bridge is removed, but the bridge belongs to a private landowner so Bradford Council has no powers to instruct its removal.”

Cllr Naylor said temporary repairs have been carried out to the collapsed wall at the entrance to Aldi, and design work had started on a replacement structure.

But he added: “In addition to the two collapsed areas, a length of about 70 metres of wall will also need to replaced, which will take about 12 weeks and cost approximately £200,000.

“Bradford cannot start this work until the Environment Agency gives its approval, which may put the project back to April.”

Cllr Naylor said design work had also started on a damaged wall in Bradley Road, but this again was dependent on Environment Agency approval. Repair work might not start before the summer.

He said repairs to a damaged wall and parking area in St John’s Street appeared to be the responsibility of a landowner, while a nearby collapsed sewer was on a unadopted road and may be the responsibility of Yorkshire Water.

Cllr Naylor added: “It is good to see that Bradford has responded to several of these problems already but I am concerned about the potential delays.

“Given the exceptional circumstances, a pragmatic approach to consents should be adopted by the Environment Agency to speed repairs up.”