A historic cobbled street has been “vandalised” after contractors dug it up and slapped down an ugly slab of black asphalt.
It follows an emergency repair to a water leak in Canterbury’s Burgate where contractors have ripped up granite setts.
Highways bosses say the aim was to reopen the road as quickly as possible – and South East Water have pledged to return within weeks to return the street to its original appearance.
But the way the job has been left has been condemned by the Canterbury Society, with its heritage spokesman and trustee, Clive Bowley, describing it as “conservation vandalism”.
It comes amid wider concerns over slapdash repairs to paving across the city centre, which has UNESCO World Heritage Site status.
“I appreciate it was an urgent repair but my worry is that it will be left like this because it will take specialists and a lot of money to reinstate,” Mr Bowley said.
“The council spends a fortune on high-quality surfacing, such as in Palace Street and Guildhall Street and yet services contractors seem to just blast through this, reinstating service works using the cheapest possible materials, regardless of the surrounding surfaces.
“Compare this with the Continent, especially Germany, France and Holland, where highway surfaces are initially laid and maintained to an impeccable standard.”
Fellow trustee Guy Mayhew agrees, adding: “I share the concern of many residents who feel that the patch of asphalt laid in the middle of a historic, cobbled street within the heart of Canterbury’s Conservation Area falls well below the standard expected in such a sensitive setting.
“Unfortunately, it’s far from unique, but one of a series of inappropriate reinstatements across Canterbury’s historic core – from Guildhall Street to Longport – that have triggered local concern.”
Mr Mayhew says there are numerous other examples of unsightly patchwork street repairs in the city centre, not worthy of its historic standing.
“These incidents aren’t just about individual materials, they reflect a systemic issue around weak specification, poor oversight, and lack of accountability between Kent County Council, Canterbury City Council and utility companies,” he says.
“This issue is now more urgent than ever. With major public investment through the Levelling Up Fund (LUF) about to reshape parts of the city centre, there’s a real risk that poorly managed repair works could start unpicking those improvements almost immediately.”
LUF projects in Canterbury include a revamp of the Dane John Gardens and turning the area at the bottom of the high street around the historic Westgate Towers into a new square, which will remain open to traffic.
A spokesman for Kent County Council said the emergency works by South East Water were to fix a leak, with the need to reopen the road as quickly as possible.
But the authority says the company is obliged to reinstate the road to its original surface within six months.
A Canterbury City Council spokesman stressed it is only a temporary repair.
After being contacted by KentOnline, head of water supply for Kent for South East Water, Nick Bell, said: “We’re sorry to customers in the Canterbury area who have been left upset at the current appearance of the interim surface laid following urgent repairs to the burst water main in Burgate.
“This is not the finished reinstatement, but our priority was to backfill the excavation quickly to allow the road to be reopened, rather than prolonging the road closure.
“We have already ordered the necessary materials to complete the permanent reinstatement, which involves re-setting the granite cobbles to their original condition.
“We are planning this within the next couple of weeks and we’re currently awaiting receipt of notices from the local authority’s highways department to complete this work.
“Once received, we’ll work as quickly as possible to minimise the impact locally and restore the road to its original condition.”
