'We feel marooned by roadworks around our market town'

Article excerpt

Businesses in a market town say roadworks have devastated their sales, leaving them feeling isolated and cut off from customers. Shop owners are calling for the construction projects to be staggered or scheduled differently to ease the impact on their livelihoods. The complaint highlights a common tension between infrastructure improvement and the immediate economic pain inflicted on local merchants during extended construction periods. Several business owners report significant drops in takings since work began.