Belgrave Road in Ventnor has been closed following a significant collapse of the retaining wall between the road and Esplanade Road below.
Cracks and distortion of the road surface have been evident for some time -a large puddle is always evident after rain – but these problems have increased significantly over the last couple of days.
Wall collapse and landslide
As the photos below show, a large chunk of the retaining wall has now collapsed and what is thought to be several tonnes of earth slipped down the bank.
The cracks in the road have become much more exaggerated and extended further than previously seen, with the footway becoming distorted.
Long-known problem
One resident on the road that OnTheWight spoke to said he’d been warning the Isle of Wight council about a problem being there for over 30 years.
Island Roads have closed the road from its junction with Alpine Road for 125 metres.
Response from the council
OnTheWight approached Island Roads and Isle of Wight council with a number of questions.
An Isle of Wight Council spokesperson was unable to provide answers to our questions but said,
“A road closure has been put in place at Belgrave Road and Esplanade Road, Ventnor, to ensure public safety, following significant cracking in the road and the breach of an adjacent retaining wall.
“A team of structural and geotechnical engineers are currently carrying out investigations on site to determine the root cause of the problem and once this work has been completed, we will be in a position to comment further.”
Click on the images to see larger versions
Thanks to Tom and Lesley for the heads-up.
Article edits
2.37pm 16 Jan 2020 – comment added from IWC.
