RESIDENTS who have been waiting almost eight months for roadworks to be completed have spoken of their anger and frustration after work started again - and then stopped.

Disgruntled residents living on a new estate in Middleton St George, near Darlington, said around 30 workers arrived on Wednesday morning, but left an hour later.

It comes as The Nothern Echo this week reported that residents had waited for work on Goosepoole Way, off Sadberge Road, to be completed since January.

Read more: Anger as roadworks in Middleton St George unfinished for EIGHT MONTHS

Developer Story Homes has since said a leak had been identified and confirmed, but that it still expects work to be completed within the next two weeks.

The Northern Echo:

The roadworks have been left unfinished for the past eight months Picture: SARAH CALDECOTT

But residents shared their feelings of "disbelief" after noticing the workers leave the site, on the Hunters Fold and Paddocks View development, at around 10am on Wednesday.

One resident said that they had received no warning or explanation as to why work to finish the road had seemingly started, then abruptly finished.

The resident, who asked to remain anonymous, said: "It's just confusing, this has left us all angry.

"We're wondering how can something which appears so simple to do take this long, what are these people playing at. It's beggar's belief."

The resident had earlier this week raised concerns over exposed cables and unfilled ditches, which he claimed posed a risk to children playing in the area.

The Northern Echo:

Residents say live wires have been left exposed Picture: SARAH CALDECOTT

At the time, he described it as a "death trap," and said: "It’s an accident waiting to happen. They could fall in, there are electrical live wires down there.

The resident, who also said Story Homes had "fobbed" them off claiming it had failed to keep its promises to fix the work, said their lives had been made a misery since January.

Story Homes previously apologised for any inconvenience caused to residents, saying that delays to the completion of the work had been caused due to a number of factors.

The developer, which has housing estates across the region, said the original contractor brought in had faced issues including staffing shortages due to the Covid pandemic.

It said it had then been forced to "source" an alternative contractor to complete the works, saying that it had this week been able to resume work with an expected completion date of the week ending August 13.

In response to the latest concerns, a spokesperson for Story Homes said: “We can confirm that works are progressing as planned in line with our schedule of works.

"Initially the water utility company, Northumbrian Water Limited, advised us that the waterlogged area was not due to a leak, however, have since confirmed that it is.

"The leak is being repaired in conjunction with the work and will not impact the timescales we have in place.

“The health and safety of our residents and the local community is of the upmost importance to us and we have ensured that the appropriate safety measures are in place, including barriers to prevent access to work areas.”

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