Belfast business owners warn ‘shambolic’ road works could lead to ‘tsunami of insolvencies’

Business owners have slammed the Department for Infrastructure for ‘strangling’ Belfast city centre with ‘shambolic’ roadworks that could result in a ‘tsunami of insolvencies’.

Commuters have complained of a noticeable difference in their journey times to and from the city centre since the commencement of two major infrastructure projects earlier this month.

Durham Street has been closed as public realm works to upgrade the area surrounding the new Grand Central Station, which is expected to last for 12 months.

Meanwhile, there are overnight and weekend closures on the Sydenham bypass as part of a £3.8m resurfacing scheme.

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The infrastructure minister has previously acknowledged there had been traffic issues resulting from both projects but he urged car drivers to switch to public transport.

However, even bus and train passengers have not escaped the frustration with many services experiencing knock-on delays.

The Department of Infrastructure confirmed that a moratorium to roadworks will take place from November 25.

However, hospitality and retail businesses have called for an immediate pause due to lower footfall caused by traffic congestion.

Eamon McCusker, who owns AM/PM, the Cabaret Supper Club and the Chubby Cherub said the situation is ‘abysmal’.

“The roadworks have had a real negative impact on trade in the city and a moratorium from November 25 is not going to solve anything, we need action now,” he said.

“Weeks of ongoing disruption mean there is a stigma attached to going into the city centre and we can already see this with customers changing their Christmas plans to earlier in the day or out of the city completely.

“This is not normal standard traffic and it’s astounding that the negative impact it would have on the city wasn’t envisioned.

“This city has been on its knees since Covid and that has only been compounded by the fact that people can not access the city. We would normally experience a bit of an uplift in late October but more and more people are cancelling their bookings.

“This year has had the most insolvencies in our sector in 20 years and I do fear that business in the city will face a tsunami of insolvencies in the new year unless the department takes action now.

Chris Suitor at Suitor Bros in Upper Arthur street said the situation is in ‘total shambles’ and could lead to consumers shopping elsewhere.

“For businesses like mine and the hospitality sector, this is harvest time when we take a large chunk of profit to keep going through the leaner months in January, February and March.

“The Department for Infrastructure is strangling the city centre with roadworks that have been nothing short of total shambles. We thought they would take some time and stagger them out but in this instance, they seem to have clumped them in all together.

“I understand that roadworks need to happen and there is never really a good time to carry them out, but I feel that the Department and the Minister are not taking into account the feedback from businesses and the negative impacts they have.

“The works in the centre are bad enough but then further works on arterial routes are causing motorists to go through the city centre be it to pick the kids up from school, a doctor’s appointment or returning home from work and we are getting this congestion and the gridlock. This then leads to further accessibility issues that could harm footfall and trade for many businesses in the centre.

“My concern would be people choosing to avoid the centre centre for shops further out and in turn changing their shopping habits and then never coming back.”

Owner of The Deer’s Head, David Neely believes habits have already changed in the nighttime economy and that difficulty accessing the city centre is driving more people away.

“Translink and the Department for Infrastructure own the keys to the city and no one seems to engage with the businesses in it before making these decisions.

“They have decided to pause roadworks and implement a night bus service on Fridays and Saturdays for five weeks before Christmas, but businesses operate 52 weeks a year.

“Christmas for hospitality and retail starts the second week of November as we try and elongate the week leading up to the Christmas market and get people back through the doors so implementing a moratorium on roadworks on the 25th of November isn’t going to help at all.

“The damage is done and it’s going to be a tough Christmas.”

A Department for Infrastructure spokesperson said, “in common with other major cities, the road network around Belfast can become congested at peak times”.

“Roadworks projects are carefully planned, programmed, and publicised by the Department and the utility providers in advance,” they said.

“This is to avoid as much disruption as possible and whilst we can and do undertake mitigations, some congestion is inevitable.

“The Minister will continue to explore all available opportunities, including extending this period, to support businesses in the weeks and months ahead.”