Gills Cliff Road in Ventnor is set to re-open on Friday (Aug 9) following the completion of a major safety scheme.

The road was closed on safety grounds in mid-February when tonnes of rocks fell from the cliff face onto the highway destroying a set of traffic lights.

Since then, vegetation including sizable trees have been removed along with other loose material and Island Roads has worked with the Isle of Wight Council to design and approve a safety scheme that will allow the road to be re-opened.

The solution, installed by local company DDGA, has seen a netting of high tensile steel anchored to the rockface by 82 rock anchors — or dowels. The 350 square metre-plus of netting will both stabilise the rockface and also prevent any boulders that do become loose, falling into the highway.

The netting is the same as that used for vehicle restraint systems on the Grand Prix circuit.

Island Roads geotechnical engineer Madeline Clewett said, “Given the height of the cliff, the restricted nature of the site and the fact that areas of the cliff face were unstable in the aftermath of the main fall, this has been a complex project to deliver.

“We were fortunate to be able to work with one of our local partners DDGA who have extensive knowledge of the area and together we are pleased to say the project will be completed on schedule.

“We understand the importance of opening the road, particularly given the other challenges in and around Ventnor, and we are delighted that this work means it is now safe to do so. We would like to thank the local community for its understanding during the project.”

Another local company, Greenscapes Tree Care also played a key role in the project by supplying a specialist cherry picker – the only of its kind on the Island – this allowed safe working access to the 14-metre cliff face and the management of the trees that had established themselves.

David Vrba, managing director of DDGA said: “It was a job full of technical challenges carried out in some very hot weather. But we enjoyed meeting those challenges as part of a local team that worked really well together to deliver the required solutions to help restore access to this part of Ventnor.”