THERE has been more traffic disruption in Enniskillen town centre as work gets under way to replace the town’s electric cables, some of which are 80-years-old.
Some businesses are not happy about yet another week of gridlock, with work beginning in the Diamond area and moving up towards the Cathedral.
However, NI Electricity (NIE) has said the work to replace cables was “critical” and said it was working with local businesses and residents to try to reduce the disruption as much as possible.
When the Herald spoke to one local business person this week they said they had not had a single customer that afternoon due a combination of the road works and heavy rain.
“People aren’t able to park, that’s the big thing,” she said, adding it had been her understanding the works would be carried out at night time. “We were supposed to be informed of when it was actually happening, but I hadn’t been told.”
Another local business person was philosophical about the works: “Unfortunately the two or three days they are outside your door it’s not OK, but then they go to someone else’s door and you have the busiest two or three days of the week.”
He added: “It’s progression. Long term we hope it is all worth it, we have to move forward.”
The works are a £1 million project by NIE, and are being carried out in six phases ahead of the Enniskillen Public Realm Scheme.
With approximately 7km of mains cable is being laid, the work will be carried out on one footpath at a time. It is expected to be finished by November.
An NIE spokesman said the project would “replace the existing low voltage cable network ensuring the continued resilience and performance of the electricity network in the area.”
They added: “It is very important to us that all residents and businesses within Enniskillen are kept informed of our plans.
“Since before the project began our engineering and customer relations teams have been meeting with customers on an ongoing and daily basis, as well as liaising with the Council and the Chamber of Commerce to ensure we are addressing customer feedback.
“Some work has been undertaken at night depending on the location, nature of the excavation work and in some cases to facilitate cable change overs.”
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