THE Highways Agency last night pledged a “full review” of the circumstances which led to one of the region’s major arterial routes – the A1 – being closed by flooding for two days.

In unprecedented scenes, a 40-mile stretch of the motorway between Dishforth, North Yorkshire, and Bradbury, County Durham, remained closed to northbound traffic last night because of flooding near Catterick . The southbound side had reopened at about 2.30pm yesterday.

The agency, which said it was “working around the clock” to fully reopen the route, faced a number of questions about the closure, which occured on a nonmotorway stretch of the route which campaigners have wanted upgrading for a number of years.

Douglas Kell, a director of the Civil Engineering Association in the North-East, said: “It has to be investigated to see what caused a 40-mile stretch of road to close.

“Is there a problem with the drainage or remedial work required? That should be looked into.

“This cannot happen again – not with such a major route.”

In July, a 13-mile section of motorway was opened between Dishforth and Leeming Bar, North Yorkshire.

However, plans to upgrade a further dual carriageway
stretch between Leeming and Barton, near Darlington, including the flooded section at
Catterick, have been shelved after a Government spending review.

At the time, the Highways Agency’s chief executive Graham Dalton said a further upgrade was vital, but it would be an expensive scheme.

He also said it was high on a list of improvements he would like to see.

Campaigners hope the flooding will prompt a change of
heart.

Mr Kell said: “We are campaigning for a stretch north of Leeming Bar to be improved. Hopefully, something like this will bring it to the fore more quickly.

“A major route into the region has been shut for two days and that is just horrendous. The A1 needs desperate action now and the Government has to put the money in.”

Tom Brown, chairman of the Institution of Civil Engineers’ regional flood panel, said: “The design for that stretch of road [at Catterick] was probably reasonable at the time, but it is now quite old.

“I don’t know what the original design concept was and we don’t yet know what happened on the ground, but the questions you have to ask is were there drains blocked or sufficient maintenance going on, or was the rain that occurred simply just such a massive event
that it would have always been a problem?

“Most things can be solved if you have enough money and you are prepared to put it into the right places. Drains could be made bigger and water moved more effectively, but that could be quite expensive.

“If money is spent it could be at the expense of something else. Local authorities, the Highways Agency and the Environment Agency have had their budgets cut so there is a lot of work being put in to ensure
that the money that is being spent retains the greatest
value.”

James Ramsbotham, chief executive of the North East
Chamber of Commerce, said the A1 was “essential” to businesses operating within the region and its closure would have impacted many firms.

A spokesman for the Highways Agency said: “The situation has been caused by a large volume of water flooding off fields and local roads adjacent to the network. Highway drainage runs into local streams and rivers which are also flooded.

“The scale of the A1 closure is also necessary for the safety of our workforce, who are doing everything they can to deal with the situation. Now that the water levels are stabilising, our teams are investigating
all the options for removing the water.”

The spokesman added: “We have experienced exceptional weather conditions over the past few days. As is normal practice after a major incident, we will be carrying out a full review of what has happened on the A1 trunk road at Catterick and assessing what, if any, improvements can be carried out in the area.”