FOR several traders located in the short stretch of Maude Street, Shepparton between High Street and Vaughan Street, trading has become a nightmare due to works being undertaken by the Greater Shepparton City Council.
With the works on the Maude Street and Vaughan Street intersection taking place from February through to April, blocking off the through traffic, the additional works on the Maude Street side has seen that small 30m section extend the time with a projected completion date in September.
The works included relocation of services such as electricity, gas and water with an upgrade of the stormwater system below the ground and new pavement and road marking above the ground while further work will include landscaping and the installation of lights and street furniture being the final stage.
Traders are hesitant about coming forward other than to say their business has declined to a fraction of what it should be. Some have concerns about their ability to survive as a business for much longer if pedestrian and passing vehicle trade is not forthcoming.
A comparison of the works has been made with the occurrence of a giant 30m wide sinkhole that was 20m deep, appear in a busy part of Fukuoka, a large city in Japan with all of the disruption to the below ground services. The repairs were carried out within two days enabling engineers to make necessary safety checks within another couple of days and the disruption to the area took less than a week to resolve. The works in Maude Street will take seven months.
