IN Brief:
- Openreach is scheduled to begin a cable diversion at Shaldon on 9 November, with the first operation expected to last around two weeks.
- Three-way temporary traffic lights, parking suspensions on Ringmore Road, and restrictions on turning will be used during the works.
- A National Grid cable diversion and repairs to highway drainage must follow before the council can begin rebuilding the wall that collapsed in February 2024.
Devon County Council has set 9 November as the start date for telecommunications cable diversions ahead of the reconstruction of a collapsed retaining wall in Shaldon. Openreach will move cables from the site between Torquay Road and Ringmore Road, with the work expected to take about two weeks. The wall failed in February 2024, and permanent rebuilding cannot proceed until affected utilities and drainage have been dealt with.
The cable operation will require a different arrangement for traffic at the junction. Existing temporary signals will be replaced with three-way lights to give the contractor a safe working area, and parking will be suspended on Ringmore Road to reduce queuing. Restrictions on turning between Ringmore Road and Torquay Road will also apply during the diversion. These measures concern enabling works rather than the structural reconstruction itself.
Openreach’s programme is the first dated part of a wider sequence. A National Grid cable also needs diverting, and highway drainage damaged during previous utility works requires repair. Devon County Council expects dates for those later operations to be arranged in the new year, although it has not specified their duration. The council intends to begin rebuilding the wall once the preparatory work has been completed.
The order of operations reflects the physical constraints of repairing a structure beside an active road. Utilities can occupy the same ground needed for excavation, access, and temporary support, so their position needs establishing before intrusive works can progress. Relocation arrangements must be coordinated with the service owners to avoid damaging live networks. The council has identified the affected services but has not published a diversion route or a construction method for the replacement wall.
The collapsed structure performed a retaining function, resisting pressure from the ground behind it rather than acting solely as a roadside barrier. Restoring that support requires a design compatible with the adjacent ground, highway, and nearby services. Excavation and reinstatement must also account for any utilities left in place, and for how the works area will be separated from passing traffic. The county council has not disclosed the final structural form, foundation arrangement, or temporary support system for this site.
Drainage damage creates a further interface between the enabling works and the permanent repair. The affected highway system must be restored without obstructing access needed for the wall project or leaving damaged connections beneath completed construction. Drainage can also influence ground conditions around retaining structures, although the council has not attributed the February 2024 collapse to a drainage defect. No revised drainage drawings or site-specific hydraulic assessment accompanied its 2 November update.
Temporary traffic lights have been in use since the wall failure, with residents and road users facing a prolonged period of restrictions. The forthcoming three-way arrangement is intended to make room for Openreach’s equipment and excavation rather than mark the start of permanent rebuilding. A temporary suspension of parking along Ringmore Road is expected to reduce congestion while the cable work proceeds, and the turning restrictions will affect movements between the two roads.
Dan Thomas, Devon County Council’s Cabinet Member for Highways, recognised the continuing disruption. “These utility works will cause some additional disruption, but they are an important step towards rebuilding the wall,” he said. Local councillor Heather Horner also welcomed progress towards the repair, acknowledging that residents want the temporary lights removed. Neither councillor provided a completion date for reconstruction.
Although the Openreach operation now has a start date, the electricity cable and drainage elements remain unscheduled. Each service diversion has to be coordinated with the road layout and the work that follows, and the revised traffic plan may need adjusting as one activity gives way to another. The council has not named a main rebuilding contractor or specified when structural work will start. The sequence therefore depends on completion of enabling work rather than a firm overall construction programme.
An agreed repair programme will have to accommodate the construction phase after services are cleared, as well as the reinstatement needed to return the highway to normal use. The council has provided no final project cost, completion forecast, or detailed replacement-wall design in its latest update. Those decisions remain separate from the preparatory timetable and will determine the duration of restrictions after the current cable work ends.
Openreach is due on site on 9 November for approximately two weeks, with National Grid and drainage operations expected to be arranged for the new year. Devon County Council has said permanent rebuilding should begin when those tasks are complete. The next substantive project milestones are therefore the completed cable diversions, the drainage repair programme, and a confirmed date for reconstructing the wall between Torquay Road and Ringmore Road.
