Anger at KCC highways ‘no show’ at meeting held on six-month road closure along The B2163 Upper Street, Leeds, Maidstone

Council chiefs have ruffled a few feathers after failing to appear at a meeting called to asuage fears over a village’s six-month road closure.

South East Water has announced that it must close the B2163, Upper Street, through Leeds village near Maidstone starting on July 24, and going into 2024.

The road is a key artery between the A20 and Sutton Road for destinations south of the town, and despite its narrow width is used by thousands of commuting motorists daily, as well as local residents.

Last Tuesday (May 16) South East Water held a drop-in session at the Leeds and Broomfield Village Hall to explain its plans.

Villagers acknowledge the work to renew old water mains is needed to ensure they have secure fresh water supplie in the future.

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But they are extremely worried about the traffic consequences.

Although, the official diversion route – once the road is closed – will direct traffic not to use the B2163 as a cut-through, and to use Willington Street instead, locals know from bitter experience that hundreds of motorists will continue to try to do so.

It’s fear this will end up rat-running down unsuitable narrow country lanes, rather than taking the lengthy official diversion.

It was hoped someone from Kent County Council (KCC) would be present at the drop-in to explain how the highways authority is going to ensure massive jams experienced in the past do not become a daily re-ocurrence for six months.

But KCC had no representative at the meeting and its highways spokesman said they were not asked to attend.

One resident, who lives in Park Barn Road, which cuts between Broomfield Road and Burberry Lane said they were “extremely disappointed” by their absence.

“Given the serious disruption this will cause, KCC are clearly not taking the matter very seriously,” she said.

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“Historically, whenever the B2163 is closed, traffic uses these single-track lanes as an unofficial diversion, causing total gridlock.

“This is despite various signage which is supposed to divert traffic away via Willington Street.”

She added: “The signs are always ignored by a large number of vehicles including many large vans, trucks, coaches and even articulated lorries.”

Some residents have suggested that during the closure, a one-way system should be put in place along the roads that would inevitably be used as rat-runs, so that at least traffic would continue to flow.

One suggestion is that Burberry Lane should be one-way going east and then north from its junction with Upper Street, out onto the A20, while traffic in the reverse direction should be one-way going south from the A20 down Broomfield Road.

A mum living in Leeds village said: “We were told at the drop-in that a one-way system has been dismissed as unsafe due to increased vehicle speeds.

“I believe that it would actually be far safer, with reduced speed limit signs in place, than having vehicles battling in both directions to get through on a single-track road.”

“At the moment, when I take my daughter to school in Sutton Valence, our 10-minute drive is sometimes taking up to an hour.”

This week the B2163 has been closed again – this time for emergency gas main repairs by SGN.

The closure is scheduled to go on till May 26.

She added: ”Once again we have gridlock.

“The ‘No Entry except for access’ signs are clearly not working. We need the restriction to be enforced.”

Robert Sinclair, a disgruntled resident of Forge Lane, Leeds, has written to Faversham MP Helen Whately to complain about the lack of a council presence at the meeting.

He said: “The only consensus achieved by those who attended was that KCC’s failure to turn up was a disgrace and an insult to the village. Almost every question and answer was deficient because KCC were not there.

“The damage to KCC’s reputation will be felt in due course via the ballot box.”

Robert added: “We are all concerned that we have to rely on the KCC highways department, which used to be so proactive and a force to be reckoned with on behalf of the residents of Kent. No longer.”

But David Brazier, the KCC cabinet member with responsibility for highways, said he couldn’t attend because he was actually meeting with his senior officers to discuss the closure programme at the time.

He said: ”Unfortunately, this was the only time we were able to meet.

“But note this was a South East Water event, not KCC’s, and we had not been asked to attend.”

Cllr Brazier (Con) added: “We understand very well the difficulties that could affect the residents of Broomfield and Kingswood during the closure and we are working with South East Water to minimise congestion on the minor roads and exclude HGVs, while permitting delivery and farm traffic.

“We have to work within the law, while bearing in mind that with diversions, drivers will always try to find ways around them.”

Cllr Brazier said he expected to be able to publish full details of KCC’s mitigation plans at the end of this month.

He said: “We are trying to find the best solutions to the problems ahead.”