Businesses in the city’s West End are beginning to feel the effects of road closures, which are having an impact on trade.
Perth Road has been closed to vehicles in both directions from the junction at Hawkhill and Blackness Avenue down to Roseangle since Monday July 24.
Pub managers, restaurant owners, florists and grocers on the usually busy street said the works – the second heavy set of closures to hit the area in just over 12 months – had the potential to adversely dampen numbers of people visiting the area, with one worried the shopping zone could turn in to a “ghost town”.
Dilly Milne-Van Boeckel, proprietor of The Rosebud florist at the top of the road, said she first heard of the plans in The Courier.
She said: “The resurfacing works have had an affect on trade quite a bit. We can still get our driver out for deliveries, and we are still open, but I have had to alter my opening hours.
“I did get a letter explaining what was going to happen and letting me know how long the works were going to go on for, but I first heard about the plans in the local papers.
“It does need to be done, the roads need to be upgraded and maintained. In the mornings now though, this area of the Perth Road feels like a ghost town.”
Amgad Taha, who owns and runs the Twin Cities Cafe, said the works were impacting his older customers, who usually visited via the bus.
“I’m not sure there is anything we can do about the roadworks over the next four weeks,” he said.
“The council sent plenty of notice, but the roadworks have had an instant impact on the numbers of people coming through the door.
“We have lots of customers who arrive via the local bus, either from the town or travelling on their way to Ninewells.
“We also have a good relationship with other nearby businesses, with customers who visit us usually shopping in other places close to us. So if they are quiet, we are quiet, and vice versa.
“Fingers crossed it doesn’t hurt us too bad, but what really can we do.”
Fraser Reid, who runs Fraser’s grocers, said the Dundee holiday fortnight was usually quite quiet, but he was expecting his afternoon trade to be impacted.
He said: “If the work needs to be done, then it needs to be done.
“Our busiest times with car travelling customers is in the afternoon, with people coming home from work and school, so we will see how the closure impacts this.”
Paul Morgans, who owns Food Anarchy close to Roseangle, said the works had immediately impacted footfall.
He said: “We have been steady since the students left at the end of term, but I have barely had a customer in all day.
“I hope we can stay open, but Tuesday has been the worst day since we opened back in January.
“We knew the roadworks were coming but it was really difficult to preempt just how quiet it was going to be.
“It has been a real eye opener, we will need to see how it is going to go.”
Martin Cleary, who is the manager of The Mayfly bar and restaurant, said: “It could have been organised better I think, but at the same time the resurfacing work really needed to be carried out.”
Michael Henderson, the owner of The Windsor Gallery, said the works were almost a “necessary evil”.
He said: “The road was in a bad way, and resurfacing works did need to be carried out.
“Unfortunately it has affected business, but the shop will remain open for the duration of the road works.”
The resurfacing works, which are being carried out by Tayside Contracts, started on Monday July 24 and are set to finish in four weeks.
Perth Road will be closed to traffic for the duration in both directions, from Hawkhill to Roseangle.
