Mineshaft repair delays near Camborne blamed on council and South West Water dispute
Residents frustrated by ongoing Pendarves Street closure
Delays fixing a 40ft deep mineshaft hole on a road near Camborne are due to a dispute between Cornwall Council and South West Water (SWW).
Pendarves Street in Beacon, near Camborne, had to be completely shut when the mineshaft collapsed at the end of November, with traffic and buses having to be diverted.
Frustrated residents say the months-long closure has caused “traffic chaos” in surrounding streets with the village of Troon said to be entirely “cut off”. However, it looks like they will remain frustrated for the time being.
Correspondence from the area’s Labour MP has revealed that the repair work is being delayed by a dispute between South West Water and the council.
A caseworker for Perran Moon MP wrote to a concerned resident saying: “There is currently a dispute between South West Water and Cornwall Council regarding responsibility for works. Perran is putting pressure on both authorities to get this resolved as soon as possible to enable works to begin.
“There have also been some requests for a ‘businesses open as usual’ sign and Perran will be taking this request directly to Cornwall Council”.
The council verified on Friday, January 30 that it was arranging for signs to be put up in the area.
The local authority has released a statement saying it is ready to carry out its own repairs but is waiting on SWW to do its own sewer and water diversion work first.
A spokesperson for Cornwall Council said: “Surveys and geotechnical investigations carried out at Pendarves Street revealed a mining feature which runs to around 12 metres deep beneath the road surface.
“From our perspective, we are ready to begin on site and negotiations with other utility providers are at a stage where work can begin. However, before we can carry out this work sewer and mains water services running close to the feature need to be diverted.
“Cornwall Council is ready to carry out our repairs as soon as South West Water have done so.”
In turn, SWW appears to be blaming the council for the delay.
A spokesperson said: “Our teams have investigated the pipework in Pendarves Street, Beacon, following the historic mine feature found under the road by Cornwall Council.
“We have a plan in place to use overland pipes to divert our sewer and water mains which are under the hole so that Cornwall Council can undertake the necessary works to make the road safe for highway users and local residents.
“As soon as we get permission from Cornwall Council to begin the work, we will start to divert the pipes.”
It has not been revealed when the impasse between the responsible authorities will be resolved.
In the meantime, Cornwall Council has worked with Go Cornwall Bus to provide a shuttle service between Troon and Camborne – service 49B stops at The Square, Grenville Gardens in Troon and Camborne Bus Station.
For more information visit the Transport for Cornwall website www.transportforcornwall.co.uk