The Upper Den Carriageway in Teignmouth will reopen temporarily to provide additional parking while essential gas works take place in the town.

The road, which splits the main seafront from the Den, closed to traffic for the summer on May 1.

However, fears that town centre businesses would lose trade due to parking suspensions put in place for the gas works, prompted Devon County Councillor David Cox to request a temporary reopening of the road.

Devon County Council’s Traffic Management Team Manager said the County Council would be happy to support the reopening of the road until July 1 subject to a Temporary Traffic Regulation Order being implemented.

Traders in Teignmouth have welcomed the news with Chamber of Commerce chair Keith Underhill commenting that ‘common sense prevails’.

Last week, Wales & West Utilitiles began a three-month project to upgrade gas pipes around Teignmouth town centre and seafront.

The work will close key town centre roads and restrict parking.

The Esplanade and Den Promenade will be closed for nearly two weeks in June (June 9-20) and Hollands Road and Station Road will be shut for nearly three weeks from the end of June until mid-July (June 23–July 11).

Phased parking suspensions will be in place on on Esplanade, The Strand, South View, Den Crescent, Courtenay Place, Station Road and Brunswick Street

‘The work is essential to keep the gas flowing safely and reliably to local homes and businesses, keeping people warm for generations to come,’ said a Wales & West Utilities spokesperson.

There have previously been calls for the Upper Den Carriageway to be open year-round. However, Devon County Council’s Highways and Traffic Orders Committee (HATOC) has rejected permanent reopening proposals due to concerns over safety, environmental and policy issues.

Councillor Cox clarified that the debate over a permanent opening of the road was a separate matter and that the temporary reopening was purely related to mitigating the impact on parking caused by the gas works.

Wales & West Utilities had come under fire from Teignmouth Town Council for a lack of communication relating to the works.

However, Wales & West Utilities argued that the company had carefully planned its network upgrade.

‘As part of our planned approach, we sent letters to all the homes that would be affected and our customer service team has visited local businesses along the route to talk to them individually about the project. We also contacted Teignmouth Town Council and discussed the works with them to help minimise disruption to the community and to support forthcoming events, including the June Folk Festival,’ said Wales & West Utilities programme controller for Teignmouth Roxanne Whittaker.

‘While we carefully plan our network upgrade and work closely the local community to keep disruption to a minimum, we appreciate our work can impact on local businesses. Any local traders who feel their business has been adversely affected by our work can apply for compensation under the Gas (Street Works) Compensation for Small Businesses Regulations 1996,’ she added.