Flooding on an Angus road has once again caused problems for commuters, but a local councillor believes the matter could be dealt with soon.
Water on the B9134 Old Brechin Road between the Angus town and neighbouring Forfar has caused problems for years.
Large flood patches gather whenever there is heavy rainfall at land east of Lunanhead, next to the former Grid Substation, around two miles from Forfar, most recently rearing its head again during periods of heavy rain earlier this week.
Ian Robb, who works at Laird Brothers said the matter had been ongoing since he began his career with the concrete firm as a sales assistant in 2016.
‘Several years’
He said: “There was major flooding across the road between Lunanhead and Forfar, it’s been like this for several years and Angus Council seems to be doing nothing about it, I have contacted the council and got the standard response of ‘they are aware of the matter and it is scheduled for repair later on this year’, the same way as it was a few years back.
“The flooding is so deep that it is over the kerb on both sides of the road.”
‘Just as bad’
Ian 47, who lives in Forfar, added: “What the council basically said to me was, ‘thanks for letting us know, there’s work due later on this year’.
“I’ve been working for Lairds now for five years and it’s been going on for that length of time.
“From what I can gather from speaking to people who have worked here longer, the council did try and do repairs to it something like seven to ten years ago, and it hasn’t actually helped, it’s just as bad.
Costing time or risking vehicle damage
“It just seems to be every time that we get rain, it floods across the road, so you’ve got either drive through the middle of the flood or you’ve got to go round by Myreside to avoid it.
“By Myreside you’re talking about a two-mile detour. So it’s either costing you that time or it’s at risk to your vehicle.
“The council have known about this for god knows how many years. If they’ve got the money there to do it, why are they not doing it before the end of the year?
“Are they hoping that we’re not going to have rain during the summer and it’s going to get forgotten about and they’re not actually going to do anything about it?
‘Saving costs’
“That would mean another year of saving costs and it not coming out of the budget – that’s my train of thought anyway.
“I stay in Forfar so I’ve got to come through it every day to get to my work.”
SNP councillor Lynne Devine, who represents the Forfar and District ward, said she was “aware of the difficulties” the flooding caused for motorists, but said the matter was being looked at by council officers.
She said: “The council is on the job. There were some trucks out there yesterday. I think it’s well under way. Something will be done. It’s an engineering problem, as far as I’m aware.
‘Excessive rain’
“Council officers have been aware of it obviously for a while, but it has been worse with the excessive rain that we’ve had over the past few weeks.
“I absolutely understand the difficulties for people trying to get into Forfar from Lunanhead and vice versa. but I think work is now about to start.
“We have tried to find the timescales out, but it’s been a bit of a moveable feast. But certainly, it does seem that something is moving now, and it is being looked at, because the officers know, they’re very well aware of the difficulties.”
‘Actively seeking to engage a contractor’
Ms Devine said was unsure of timescales, the cost involved or the details of what work would be done.
A spokesman for Angus Council said: “We are aware of the issue with regards to local flooding in this area during periods of heavy rainfall and are actively seeking to engage a contractor to resolve this issue.”
The council was asked about timescales, costs, and details of the work, but had not responded to these questions at the time of publication.
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