Cowgill: Dales residents feel “forgotten” after five month road closure due to landslip

Residents of a remote valley in the Yorkshire Dales say they are feeling “forgotten” after waiting more than five months for a road to reopen after a landslip.

The community of Cowgill, in Dentdale, near Hawes, is facing long detours after the landslip in November last year which closed the route out of the east end of the valley.

As well as adding time and fuel costs to everyday journeys, residents say the detour is hitting hospitality businesses in the dale and the village of Dent.

Residents, including two parish councillors, and a ranger from the Yorkshire Dales National Park Authority, recently gathered to discuss the issue and hear of the reasons for delays.

Dentdale residents use healthcare services at either Hawes or Sedbergh and the meeting was told of pensioners, including an 80-year-old veteran, facing 22-mile detours or being ‘cut off’ from their GPs.

The meeting was held in Cowgill’s only pub, The Sportsman’s Inn, which has been hit by the road closure.

The pub relies on passing trade as well as hikers on the long-distance Dales Way footpath.

Transport companies delivering overnight baggage for walkers are seeing rising costs as they detour round the landslip to get to the Sportsman’s.

The C5101 was closed at a spot near the Denthead Viaduct on November 24 last year when a section of the supporting slope slid into the river.

Both traffic and pedestrians were rerouted until last week when the council-appointed design consultant deemed it safe for passage on foot and bicycle.

Councillor Ian Mitchell, from Westmorland and Furness Council, has called on the authority to speed up the repairs.

He said: “I understand and share residents’ anger at the lack of progress with the landslip.

“Although I welcome the news that there is now pedestrian and cycle access, I urge the council to move quicker to get the road open as soon as possible.”

A spokesperson for Westmorland and Furness Council, has apologised to residents and said a number of factors were to blame for the delay in reopening the road.

These included the Christmas break, land ownership legalities and the geography of the landslip.

He added: “We appreciate this may not be what the local community want to hear.

“However, I think it is important that we are realistic, and people understand that this is a complex site and there isn’t a quick fix to the problem.”