Council presses ahead with culvert repairs

Cheshire East Council highways engineers have reopened a road where a collapsed culvert has presented serious challenges.

The damaged culvert, in Hobson Street, Macclesfield, has required extensive investigation and presented many difficulties, owing to the presence of a gas main and mains drain.

Work to assess the extent of the damage, and how best to safely carry out repairs, has involved the council working with several utility companies to arrive at a safe solution. 

Councillor Craig Browne, Cheshire East Council’s deputy leader and chair of its highways and transport committee, said: “I am so pleased that we have been able to reopen Hobson Street so that residents can fully access their homes.

“This has been a long process due to the very challenging nature of the collapse and I am grateful to residents for their understanding and patience. We continue to work with partner agencies to work out a long-term solution and we will keep the residents informed of our progress.” 

Ongoing investigations will include detailed surveys and the use of remote CCTV to understand the extent of the collapse, as well as the condition of the rest of the culvert.

The council is now pressing ahead with its aim to deliver a long-term solution to what has been an exceptional engineering challenge.