A MAIN road out of Tavistock could be closed for over three months as groundworks continue to a new estate being built on the edge of town.

Butcher Park Hill, the road out to Brentor, could be closed for up to 14 weeks early next year to allow sewerage and other works to be carried out to the Embden Grange estate being built by developer David Wilson Homes (part of Barratt Developments PLC).

The developer has applied to Devon County Council for a road closure licence for early February and this week informed Tavistock Town Council of its intentions to close the road and invited any comments from the council regarding the plan.

In a statement to the Tavistock Times, technical and planning manager for David Wilson Homes Andy Cattermole said: ‘We have applied to Devon County Council for a road closure notice to undertake the installation of services, including sewers.

‘The local authority will review the application and confirm the dates in due course and we will work to this timescale.’

In an email to the town council, the building contractors, on behalf of David Wilson Homes, said: ‘We will be installing a new foul sewer and new gas line up Butcher Park Hill, plus we will be excavating and exposing the existing BT line for it to be moved in anticipation for the works which are yet to be agreed and applied for. The works will take 14 weeks and we are currently looking at starting on February 11, 2019.’

The contractors also included a proposed diversion route, which takes drivers onto Glanville Road, Old Launceston Road, onto the B3362 and towards Chillaton and Lifton.

At a meeting of Tavistock Town Council’s development management and licensing committee on Tuesday, councillors discussed the planned road closure and voted to recommend to full council to make a formal objection to Devon County Council.

Following the meeting Cllr Paul Ward, who chaired the meeting, said: ‘We thought it would cause a major inconvenience, being that is the main road north out of town.

‘We were also concerned that the alternative diversion routes given are along narrow roads and lanes, which may prove difficult to navigate.

‘The long period of time proposed includes the school’s Easter holidays so there will be more traffic in Tavistock.

‘It’s not just a major inconvenience, it’s a major problem for the town and they really need to find a different way of doing the work.’