A MASSIVE coastal improvement and flood defence scheme at West Bay could be underway within weeks – but major concerns have been raised over the impact of closing its beaches in the lead-up to the tourist season.

The Environment Agency is proposing to undertake coastal defence work, known as the West Bay Coastal Improvement (WBCI) Scheme, to provide coastal flood protection to the resort.

Work is due to start in April and is expected to take three-and-a-half months.

Construction will start at East Beach and work westwards, however, there will be a period in which both East and West beach will be closed to the public at the same time.This has caused concern from the community, with West Bay Community Forum saying the simultaneous closure would ‘effectively shut down part of the resort.’

As spokesman for the forum said: “[We] are very concerned about the proposed concurrent timing of the works and will be responding to the consultation accordingly.”

County, district and town councillor Keith Day says the plan is ‘ill-conceived’, ‘hair-brained’ and ‘has to be stopped.’

“It is the bonkers equivalent of closing Oxford Street in the weeks before Christmas,” said Cllr Day. “The months April to July, although not peak, are a much-needed period of income for the area. The disruption could have a serious detrimental effect on the local economy - it is a cost too high to be acceptable. By denying access to important areas of tourism, our visitors could seek alternatives and may not return - and our tourist industry relies on repeat bookings. Large numbers of visitors to the whole of the Jurassic Coast make a visit to West Bay during their stay and we must prevent long-term damage to our hard-won reputation."

Bridport Town Council has voiced its concerns and put pressure on the project manager to avoid the Easter and the May half-term break.

But Jon Denner, project manager, has reassured the public work will be carried out with minimal disruption, and says while the two beaches will be closed in stages at various times throughout the works, they will only be closed simultaneously for a two-week period which is flexible.

The timetable for the project has been changed from the initial plan of nine months’ works with a two-month break during peak summer season. Work at East Beach was originally scheduled between March and June 2019, while work at West Beach was planned for September to December 2019.

These plans were amended by the Environment Agency earlier this month after an alternative source of rock was found which can be delivered more efficiently.

The amended plans show the scheme’s construction aims to work outside of peak tourist season between July and August. The plans show partial access to East Beach will be provided from June 20 and construction work is scheduled to end on July 12. Alternative access to East Cliff and West Cliff will be provided to the public and tourists throughout the construction period. In order to carry out the work in just three months, both beaches would need to be closed to the public for a substantial period, the amended plans show.

In a further development since the amended plans were submitted, Mr Denner has reassured the public there will only be a two-week period within the programme where both East Beach and the first bay at West Beach will be inaccessible to the public. This time is required to tie the end of the East Beach works into East Cliff. "Knowing that this will have a high impact on the community, we have been working with the contractor to provide as much beach access during the works as possible," he said.