The council has apologised to residents after a ‘vital’ underpass has been shut for months.

Frustration is growing in Chesham over the ongoing problems with the St Mary’s Way underpass.

The underpass allows pedestrians and other vulnerable road users to safely get across busy St Mary’s Way, but it has been repeatedly flooded over the years.

After the most recent incident of flooding, the underpass has remained shut, leading to outrage among residents and concern particularly over the safety of children, disabled people and the elderly.

Chesham resident Dorothy Geller told the Free Press previously: “This underpass is a vital piece of infrastructure for the town, the elderly, children and anyone that wants to walk into town to keep fit are being directly [affected].

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“But the worse part of this is that the council have received multiple complaints over years and still nothing is done.”

St Mary’s ward councillor Wilford Augustus said as the councillor for the area he was “very aware of just how frustrated residents are about the underpass and speeding on St Mary’s Way.

“I have written to Buckinghamshire Council about the underpass and I know they have been working on trying to find a solution to the ongoing flooding.

“I believe St Mary’s Way and the Underpass need a complete rethink to improve accessibility and safety.

“Perhaps it’s time for Buckinghamshire Council to consider filling in the underpass once and for all, which we all know is below the Chesham water table.

“Perhaps they should also consider traffic calming measures including reducing speed to 20 mph and installing Pelican crossings to make crossing the road easier and safer for all users.”

The beleaguered underpass sits on top of a stream and the flooding is caused by high ground water. 

The council said there's no easy fix to solve the flooding. 

Buckinghamshire Council’s Steven Broadbent cabinet member for transport said: "We apologise to residents for the ongoing issues with St Mary's Way underpass.

"Unfortunately, it's not an easy issue to resolve.

 "We are currently investigating various options to deal with the problem for the benefit of all those wishing to use the underpass. It's vital that the chosen solution is cost-effective and good value to the taxpayer."