Harley Bank after the landslip this morning. Picture by Andy Cunningham

Motorists faced lengthy delays after a landslide caused 80 tonnes of rock to tumble down an embankment on to a main road in Shropshire.

Drivers are being diverted on to gritted minor roads after the road was closed when part of the rockface along the A458 at Harley Bank, near Much Wenlock, collapsed last night.

Council engineers were at the scene this morning to assess the damage caused by the landslip – the second since major works were carried out last July.

It is believed the incident, which happened about 9pm, is related to the weather after the county was hit yesterday by a severe blizzard storm.

Simon Alton, for Shropshire County Council, said: “The road is blocked and diversions are in place, going through Buildwas and Leighton. Those roads have been gritted, they are minor roads but they have been gritted as we appreciate there would be more traffic than normal.

“Engineers were going to Harley Bank this morning to assess the damage and how best to deal with it. They are looking into the possibility of whether it was weather-related. At the moment we don’t know how long it’s going to be closed for.”

Harley Bank underwent a £300,000 improvement scheme last July, removing 16,000 tonnes of rock to make it more stable for safety reasons, and widening the road.

This is the second landslide since the work was completed. In September last year part of the rockface collapsed on to
the road, causing one lane to be blocked.

Much Wenlock Councillor Milner Whiteman, who has a farm at Harley Bank, said: “It’s a nuisance and is causing a problem because we’ve got to go all the way round so it doubles our journey.

“They seemed to have made a good job of making the bank more stable but obviously the rocks aren’t as stable as they thought.

“It’s a shame, really, we don’t need that road closed. It’s so important. Hopefully they can get it open as soon as possible.”

By Rachael Lowe