Letter: Chaos in Brinsley

Coming back to Hall Lane at 9.30 pm from the Go Between quiz on Tuesday 5th August my friend, who was kindly dropping me off, found the road completely blocked after the church. She turned round and tried again via Underwood, Moorgreen and Engine Lane only to find the road blocked again at Eastwood Hall. A young man who had been given the unenviable task of explaining what was happening told us that the entrance to Hall Lane was closed but if we went back to the other end he would tell someone who would let us through.

Back we went only to find that a similarly unfortunate young man knew nothing of this and said if he allowed us to go through we were in danger of being hit by machinery. We faced a wait of two hours. In my younger day I could have walked it.

There is no way into Hall Lane other than from the A608. Fortunately, having lived in Brinsley for a long time we navigated through using a very rough farm track. My friend was obliged to return to her end of the village by the same route.

I find it unacceptable that residents are not informed in advance. Leaflets could have been dropped off in letterboxes, but of course an inconvenience in our increasingly digital age. What if it had happened two weeks earlier when I would have been driving back at the end of an exhausting day from Manchester Airport, desperate for bathroom and bed? Waiting for two hours just because a contractor can't be bothered to make proper arrangements to escort a legitimate resident through is unacceptable.

As you can gather, I'm not amused!

Rosemary