A KENNEL owner has fumed at road closures in Froxfield which forced customers to walk up to half a mile to deliver their pets. John Cole, who runs Coleus cattery and boarding kennels at High Cross, raged after Barnet Side Lane was closed for pothole repairs. With motorists already diverted along Barnet Side Lane, due to planned road improvements at nearby Dellfield, visitors were thwarted by Hampshire County Council undertaking "vital pothole repairs". "It's the busiest weekend of the season, and the diversion was working fine on Thursday, but someone closed Barnet Side Lane at 9.30am on Friday. "This left people having to walk from the shop at Dellfield to my kennels with their dogs and carrying cats in baskets. "It's not good if you are elderly. One lady had to walk nearly half a mile with two sticks carrying her cat." Mr Cole added: "I had to meet customers at the shop to help them with their animals, but by this time I was hopping mad with between 15 and 20 dogs and cats getting lost in country lanes. "I went to Barnet Side Lane to ask what they (workmen) were doing, but no-one was on site, so I went back the kennels to ring Hampshire County Council, but had no joy. "I would like to know how this was allowed to take place, when this was the only road to High Cross. I had to contact Hampshire Highways to tell them what had happened. "How is it that the left hand doesn't seem to know what the right hand is doing?" he added. Eventually order – and the initial diversion along Barnet Side Lane - was restored in the early evening. A Hampshire County Council spokesman said: "While not ideal, we apologise for the disruption caused. Unfortunately, the pothole repair work on Barnet Side Lane was essential to ensure the safety for motorists. "We had anticipated the works being carried out under signal controls, however when on site our contractor felt the road was too narrow and took the decision to close it in order that the pothole could be repaired as quickly as possible. "We understand people's frustrations, especially those at close proximity to the works, and will do our best to ensure a similar situation doesn't happen again."
