Pub boss brewing for fight over Oldbury roadworks

Dave Yale, the boss of the Jolly Collier in Oldbury, is selling a 4.6 per cent ale called Road Closed.

He says his trade has dwindled ever since Brades Road was shut in both directions at the start of February.

Bury Hill Road has been closed since the start of March and Newbury Lane shut a few days ago so the electricity can be installed a the new Portway Lifestyle Centre.

"Everyone has been moaning about the road works," said Mr Yale.

"I was talking to Church End Brewery, based in Nuneaton, Warwickshire, and they told me they were having the same problems there. They said they had brewed a beer called Road Closed and I said 'put me down for a barrel of that'.

"It's very nice, 4.6 per cent and very light in colour."

Mr Collier said all three projects were having a damaging impact on his pub, which is based in Junction Street.

"Business is down by about 30 per cent since work started," he said.

"It is because people don't want to the inconvenience of it all; having to use diversions. It's been very frustrating.

When you consider the bad weather we were having not too long ago as well, it's probably the worst start to a year I've had since I became landlord in 1998."

Brades Road has now partially reopened but traffic is still being controlled by temporary lights. The work in Newbury Lane, from its junction with Wallace Road to its junction with the A4123 Wolverhampton Road, is expected to take eight weeks.

The closure is for work on utilities such as water, sewage, gas and electricity, that need to be done for the new £18 million Portway Lifestyle Centre.

Diversions along the A4123 are in place.

Councillor Ian Jones, Sandwell's cabinet member for neighbourhood services, said: "The Portway roadworks are virtually two miles away from the pub and throughout the time of the work in Brades Rise and Brades Road traffic was controlled in the main with temporary lights.