Published: Thursday, 12th November, 2009 12:00am

Cross Arthurlie Street work will turn us into 'ghost town'

ANGRY Cross Arthurlie Street shop owners are furious that road works there will take five months to complete.

The improvement to the road and pavements will start in January but the businesses on the street cannot understand why they will take so long.

Last month, the Barrhead News reported how the street traders forced bungling East Renfrewshire Council beaks to cancel carrying out the road works in the run up to Christmas.

But now they have been told the work which will start in January is likely to take until May to complete.

The concerned owner of Alpino's, Eric Santi, fears the road works taking five months to finish could cost him his business.

He said: "I had a chat with the guy from the Post Office and we were discussing how the M77 had a mile and a half stretch fixed recently.

"They started it on the Friday night and were finished on the Monday but it is taking the council five months to do Cross Arthurlie Street.

"There is no business here which could cope with the disruption on the street for five months.

"There will be no loading and no parking so how will shops be able to do deliveries or how will people be able to get to the shops.

"Our business will suffer and we will not get it back.

"You can't park in Paisley Town Centre without being charged and look what's happened there.

"If people can't park outside the shops they won't come at all, Barrhead could become a ghost town."

Eric added: "I don't think the street is in such a state that it needs to be effectively closed for five months to improve it.

"If my business suffers I will be forced to reduce the hours of the girls who work here and even give them a five month holiday, how will they be able to pay their bills then."

A council spokesman said: "[The shop owners] may not believe it but our road engineers know it needs improved.

"Either we shut it for a short period or we carry it out over a longer period by doing it in phases to keep the road open for as long as we can.

"This is a one off chance to improve Cross Arthurlie Street because if we don't spend the money we will lose it.

"We ask everyone to be patient when this happens."

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