The bill for temporary traffic lights next to a landslip which happened in April has passed £40,000 and is rising by £2,200 per week.

Kirklees Council has released details of the ongoing costs at the Woodhead Road site and admitted that they still don’t have a start date to reinstate the collapsed banking and wall.

Following a Freedom of Information request by the Examiner, the council revealed:

  • The manned temporary traffic lights are costing £2,225 per week - which works out at around £42,000 since they were installed on April 6.
  • The initial cost of delivering and installing concrete blocks and dealing with the initial collapse was £2,400.
  • It cost £301 for a Temporary Traffic Regulation Notice on April 5.
  • The cost of setting up the road closure/diversion on April 5 was £525.

Asked about a state date on repair work on the landslip, a Kirklees spokesman said: “There is no definite date at present time, but the council will continue to ensure the safety of road users by maintaining the temporary arrangements.”

Concrete blocks at the site of the Woodhead Road landslip

It is believed that the owner of a house on Taylor Hill - or his insurer - will have to pay for the hire of the traffic lights as well as the landslip repair.

Local councillor Andrew Cooper says he has been putting pressure on senior officers at the council to “sort it out as quickly as possible” and to be as sympathetic as possible to the plight of the householder involved.

It is believed the process is taking time because the council has been working on legal issues to ensure it is able to recover any costs relating to the landslip and ongoing costs.

Clr Cooper said: “I understand the landowner is responsible for the cost of the work.

“I want the council to make this misfortune that has fallen on this householder as easy as it can be to repay through a second charge on the property (a debt which would be repaid when the house is sold).

Clr Andrew Cooper

“Kirklees has the opportunity to show support to someone who has had an expensive incident like this happen to them through no fault of their own.”

Clr Cooper said he had asked the council several times about speeding up the process.

“The longer it drags on, the greater the costs are. I have asked several times about how it can be moved along.”

Karl Battersby, Strategic Director Economy and Infrastructure, said: “We are in contact with the owner who has responsibility for repairing the wall.

“Together we are exploring a number of options that will allow works to the wall to take place so that the temporary arrangements can be removed.

“In the meantime we have an obligation to keep the road open and allow safe passage for motorists using the road, which we are making possible through the use of traffic signals.”

The householder was not available to comment.