Popular takeaway and pub owners suffer ‘nightmare’ hit from Exeter road closure

Small business owners have complained of a serious downturn in trade due to major roadworks that have temporarily shut their end of an Exeter street.

Businesses on Buddle Lane, where gas pipe works are expected to be ongoing until mid-December, have witnessed a stark decline in customers because of the disruption being caused by the road closure.

Iannys Tomatsek, the owner of popular St Thomas restaurant Souvlaki and Gyros, said not only had he seen a rise in customers cancelling table bookings, but takeaway delivery drivers were also increasingly avoiding the area meaning he was finding it harder to fulfill orders on the likes of Just Eat and Uber Eats.

The downturn in trade has forced him to reduce the hours his staff can work, and the squeeze on his income means the father-of-two – whose new daughter is just 10 weeks old – won’t be able to return to Greece to see his family this Christmas.

He and others are hoping that potential compensation will materialise once the works have ended.

“My reputation and my business means everything to me but this is having a huge impact, with my sales down around 50-60 per cent,” he said.

“I’ve had to cut the hours that my staff can work, and it’s Christmas soon, which makes that decision even harder as everyone needs money, as do I.”

Mr Tomatsek said the pressure was having an impact on family life, too, especially because his wife cannot work at present due to being on maternity leave.

“I’m trying my best to keep the business running but I’ve had customers calling to say they have tried to come to the shop but couldn’t,” he said.

“And delivery drivers don’t always come for online orders now either as it is a mile extra in distance and they get stuck in traffic, which means I have had times where I have prepared food but it never gets delivered.”

He added that his wife and children would be returning to Greece to visit their family, but that he could not afford a ticket for himself too.

“I will have to spend Christmas without my wife and children as I need to stay and try to work,” he said.

Mr Tomatsek said other businesses on Buddle Lane, which include other takeaways, were also feeling the pinch due to the road closure.

Lee Greenaway, who runs the Green Gables pub with partner Samantha Hardware, said the business had just secured a new deal with its brewery for a range of new drinks and prices just before the roadworks started.

“We had 20 new faces that first night, then the next day, they shut down the road and since then passing trade has just been dead,” Mr Greenaway said.

“We have had to put an SOS out to the locals to call them in as the drop in trade has been like a tap turning off.

“The likes of builders who would drive past and stop for a pint doesn’t happen with the road closed, and the extra traffic the work causes means people don’t have time because they’ve been stuck for ages and so just want to go home.”

He added that some customers who got a taxi to the pub were having to pay around £3.50 more than usual because of the longer journey times, incurred in large part to the additional traffic being caused by the road closure, and that buses were also not operating on their part of Buddle Lane – particularly frustrating for the pub given a stop is right outside.

Mr Greenaway, who called the impact from the roadworks a “nightmare”, said he was having to put extra events on to try and entice people to the pub in spite of the longer journey times to reach it and reduced parking availability on Buddle Lane due to the works.

He said Admiral Taverns, the brewery that owns the pub, had been “brilliant” in terms of its support for the business.

Both Mr Tomatsek and Mr Greenaway said they had been told by Wales & West, the firm undertaking the works, that compensation could be payable for businesses that meet certain criteria.

“My only wish is for the works to be finished and to get the compensation I and others deserve,” Mr Tomatsek said.

“This situation isn’t fair and it gets harder and harder every year to run a business anyway, so this kind of thing makes it so difficult.”

But both highlighted that the true financial impact could only be properly calculated once the works were over, and they are due to last until mid-late December.

Roxanne Whittaker, utilities programme controller for Devon at Wales & West, said the work on Buddle Lane was “essential to keep the gas flowing safely and reliably to homes and businesses in the area”.

“We’ve worked closely with Devon County Council to plan this project, and to keep people safe while Buddle Lane is closed between the junctions of Dunsford Road and St Phillips Court until 07 November.

“A diversion route is in place. Following this, rolling two-way traffic lights will be in place on Buddle Lane to its junction with Redhills until Christmas.”

Ms Whittaker said prior to the works starting, letters were sent to all homes and businesses that would be affected, that its customer service team also went to homes and businesses along the route, and that local press had been contacted with the information.

“We appreciate that while we work hard to keep disruption to a minimum, our work can impact local businesses,” she added.

“Any local traders who feel their business has been affected by our work can apply for compensation under the Gas (Street Works) Compensation for Small Businesses Regulations 1996.

“They can contact our Customer Service Team on freephone 0800 912 2999 or enquiries@wwutilities.co.uk.”

“We know working on roads like these is not ideal, and we’re sorry for the disruption that it has caused, but this work really is essential to keep the gas flowing and to make sure the gas network is fit for the future.”