Businesses in Perth’s George Street say they have lost out on potentially thousands of pounds of trade during a recent road closure.
The route was scheduled to be shut at the junction between High Street, Watergate and George Street from October 8 for a week so Scottish Water could carry out maintenance work.
Although access was permitted from the Bridge Lane end of the street, local businesses have said the directions weren’t clear enough.
While “no entry” restrictions were lifted for the duration of the works, traders say the usual sign at the top of the street was not covered up, meaning drivers would be unaware of their temporary rights.
Passing trade was hit and businesses reported problems with deliveries, with at least one lorry full of perishable goods not turning up as expected.
Laura Wilson, 58, from antique and gift shop Whispers of the Past, said: “You just need to look around to see what an effect it’s had. It’s very quiet and I have lost trade.
“There’s been no real signage to tell people that they can still park. They don’t know they can come up to the top of the road and get in that way.”
Diane Brown, 51, from deli Provender Brown, said: “It’s had an effect on our takings. It’s been a very quiet week – much quieter than usual. It has been very difficult for deliveries to get through.
“I do wonder if they needed to close the road completely. The hole was relatively small and not across the entire junction, but I don’t know.”
Drew Richards, 68, of JM Richards Cycles , said: “You just have to accept it. If work needs to be done then it needs to be done.
“It has affected us big time. I had one woman telephone me and she was quite nasty on the call. I had to say it was nothing to do with us.
“But there’s no alternative. The council sent us letters explaining what was going to happen,” he added.
A council note issued before the works began, advised that all traffic would be banned from the 70 metre stretch of road from October 8 for one week.
The note said the one-way system on Watergate would be lifted to allow access and that pedestrian and vehicular access to premises will be maintained.
Perth and Kinross Council was asked to comment on the traders’ complaints but had not responded by the time of going to press.
