Herefordshire Council is dogged by legal problems after Widemarsh Street revamp (From Hereford Times)

Herefordshire Council is dogged by legal problems after Widemarsh Street revamp

9:00am Thursday 22nd July 2010 in

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THE £1.3 million re-vamp of Hereford’s Widemarsh Street might cost more that Herefordshire Council had expected.

Councillor Adrian Blackshaw, cabinet member for economic development, confirmed to a meeting of the council last Friday, July 16, that legal claims for falls in the new-look Widemarsh Street had started to come the council’s way.

Last month the Hereford Times revealed a number of shoppers needed hospital treatment for injuries including broken limbs after slipping or falling on the street’s new rippled surface.

And Coun Blackshaw’s comments came one day after another woman fell in Widemarsh Street. Jo Ferguson, from Robin Elt Shoe Shop, said staff helped the tourist who cracked her head after falling close to their shop.

The council conceded to “teething troubles” over the surface and put black tape down as a temporary measure to mark the difference between the road surface and the kerbside.

Most complaints about the new surface suggested that it was hard to distinguish between the kerbside and the same coloured strip in the road - to the extent that the two looked level.

Council heard that a full review of the Widemarsh Street scheme was due out by the end of this month.

Members were worried that claims could see the cost of the scheme rise.