Residents raise fears over Muller's Market Drayton power plans
Residents raised fears over the prospect of a year of traffic disruption with energy bosses after hearing about plans to boost Muller Dairy's electricity supply.
A meeting was held yesterday with representatives of Western Power Distribution and Muller Dairy on hand to answer questions about the project to install a three-kilometre underground electricity cable in Market Drayton.
The project is due to start on July 20 and will give a boost to the dairy's electricity supply – but residents fear it will cause chaos for the town's traffic.
Roger Smith, 70, of Smithfield Close, said: "There has got to be major problems with something like this. Obviously, hopefully everything will run smoothly, but inevitably there is going to be a problem.
"They have put this 12-month timescale in place, but that is if everything runs smoothly. It is inevitable that something will cause a problem for them, and people are concerned."
WPD announced the scheme on Monday after the processing giant called for an electricity supply upgrade.
The work is set to take place between Newport Road and Shrewsbury Road in stages over the next 12 months. It includes plans for lane closures and diversions at different points over the year.
The meeting was held at Festival Drayton Centre in Frogmore Road.
Stuart Ellison, head of engineering at Muller, said the work was to ensure all the factory could run at full capacity, including the new butter plant.
He said: "It is safeguarding the future of the site really. There is a great deal of technology and engineering that requires the demand for more power. We don't want to upset anybody with this work."
Andy Pickering, distribution manager for WPD, said: "It won't be affecting anyone's electricity supply, it will be road traffic management over the main road."
Another resident who had attended the meeting, Tim Seabrook, 56, of Shrewsbury Road, said: " It is very busy already and I don't want it causing problems."
Resident Sian Rushton, of Greenfields, said: " I'm in one of the worst affected areas, but they said they will be making provisions for people who park on the road."
Anyone who could not attend the meeting and has questions about the work should contact WPD on (01782) 403632.
