A49 underpass gets a facelift thanks to National Highways volunteers

As part of National Customer Service Week the underpass at Hope under Dinmore was cleared of litter and graffiti painted over, making it a brighter, more attractive place to walk.

In addition, rotten fencing leading to the underpass was replaced thanks to the donation of wood by Roocroft Road Restraint Systems, another of National Highways’ suppliers. Paint and other materials were supplied by Colas.

Caption: the underpass at Hope under Dinmore gets its facelift

National Highways Route Manager Richard Timothy, one of the volunteers who did the work earlier this week, said:

“The local parish council had highlighted the condition of the underpass during one of our recent meetings. Given how remote this community is, access is very important and this underpass connects the village to the church and the bus stop, yet these small-scale improvements often have difficulty competing for funds against more pressing safety concerns on our network.

“Our Customer Service Manager then made me aware we were looking for volunteering opportunities as part of National Customer Service Week and this seemed like the perfect opportunity to get the work done sooner for the community.”

Caption: the team from Colas replaced fencing at the underpass

Richard was joined by three National Highways colleagues - Customer Service Manager James Bird, Environmental Team Manager Sam Newbold and Environmental Graduate Elle Murphy - and Colas’s Social Value Lead Philippa Lee to spruce up the underpass while Colas operatives sent a team to replace the damaged fencing with the donated wood.

National Customer Service Week (2-6 October) is run by the Insititute of Customer Service to raise awareness of customer service and the vital role it plays in successful business practice and the growth of the UK economy.