A BUNGLE over a Great Yarmouth road closure left businesses facing losing vital trade and missed deliveries.

Developer Youngs Homes had originally advertised its intention to close Estcourt Road from June 27 until July 1 while putting in sewers for a new housing development.

However, an administrative error meant the road could not be closed until last week and businesses that had prepared for the road closure the previous week faced losing customers and delivery lorries, which could not get into the road.

Self-employed electrician Paul Waters, who runs Rotating Electrics in Estcourt Road, said signs were erected saying Estcourt Road was closed, but did not say businesses in the street were still open.

He said: “Nearly all of us in this street are self-employed traders. We took the previous week off because of the chaos it would cause and we thought the roadworks would take place then, but they changed the weeks and it was complete chaos in the mornings.”

The road closure was needed to enable sewers to be laid in the road as part of a new housing development at the former Northgate Hospital site.

However, county council spokesman John Birchall said the developer had not secured the proper authority for the road closure and therefore the council was not able to give the go ahead.

He said: “They could not go ahead as planned because not all the proper authority was in place, but we have tried to process it as quickly as possible. “While they have the ability to close the road they have tried to maintain access throughout the short periods of closure.”