Update: A41 closed until Mid-August

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UPDATE: 7 August 2016 – The A41 has been REOPENED – more details

UPDATE: 5 August 2016

This afternoon Shropshire Council posted here an update on the status of the damaged property adjacent to the A41 at Shakeford. The property was completely demolished yesterday and a site meeting today deemed that the carriageway was safe. Work then began to fill in the cellar with compacted hardcore, and then to remove demolished material from the site. The insurance company’s contractor has told the Council that they expect to complete this phase of the work no later than Sunday morning. The Council’s highways team will arrange for the necessary remedial works to be done on Sunday and it is anticipated that the road will reopen sometime on Monday. Earlier in the day the Shropshire Star published an update on yesterday’s demolition which features a rather underwhelming video of the site.
UPDATE: 4 August 2016
Shropshire Council have announced here this morning that the decision has been made to demolish the whole house damaged when a lorry ran into it last week. It is hoped that this will enable to a A41 to be reopened sooner than suggested below. The Shropshire Star report on the decision here, which has been made because the property “continues to pose a serious risk to members of the public and contractors”. The picture below is from the Star’s report.


Original Report
Shropshire Council LogoThis afternoon (29/7/16) Shropshire Council have updated information on the closure of the A41 at at Shakeford, Hinstock. The announcement here on the Newsroom website reads:

A41 update as of Friday 29 July at 3.40pm.
A41 scheduled to remain closed till mid-August, due to complexities around the removal of listed building.
Following the vehicle incident at Shakeford, Hinstock on the A41 this week, work is now being undertaken by the owners insurance company who are overseeing the operation to demolish a large section of the property.
However due to the conservation of the building, it cannot just be demolished with a crane or bulldozer and has to be done almost piece by piece while preserving as much of the materials as possible.
A demolition contractor is now currently working on a complex programme of work which is scheduled to start on Monday 1 August following essential health and safety checks.
Once the building is down, the impact of the crash on the cellar will be assessed as it appears  that the cellar wall on the road side is bulging, which could imply damage to the road.  This could result in reinforcement work being done to either the cellar or the road. This reinforcement work will need to be carried out before the road can be reopened, as the weight and pressure caused by opening a running lane for traffic, even under signals, could cause further damage.
The insurance company and the surveyor will continue to provide us with daily updates and have informed the council that the work will be done as quickly as possible but within the parameters of safety. Work will continue on the site after the road is reopened.
The current timescale for the closure is for mid-August but as soon as traffic lights can be installed to replace the closure they will be; however until the condition of the cellar is known, we cannot remove the closure.
We’ll provide further updates as and when work progresses.

A report published earlier today on the Shropshire Star’s website carried the headline, Shropshire A41 lorry crash: Work goes on to make house safe as road to stay closed for the weekend. That has now been superseded by a story picking up on the above announcement, A41 lorry crash: Road closed until mid-August as house is taken down brick by brick. Both reports carry this picture of the house after the lorry had been removed.

See our previous report here.