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Road of Remembrance in Folkestone to stay closed until August 2025 after landslides
10:48, 22 October 2024
updated: 12:23, 22 October 2024
The closure of a historic road hit by two landslides has been extended for another 10 months.
Road of Remembrance in Folkestone has been shut since January after a land slip that month and another in February.
Investigative work has been ongoing along the route, which connects the seafront and town centre, ever since.
But council bosses say the road closure now extends until August 2025.
A statement says: “The design team is currently gathering all the data from the investigation work. This information will help the team to design a solution for the embankment.
“While the design work is ongoing, we will keep monitoring the ecology surveys.
“This will involve regular site visits to track badger activity within the embankment. Archaeology teams will also be on standby as needed due to the historic discoveries in the area, such as Anglo-Saxon remains.
“The road closure has been extended until the end of August 2025. This is simply an administrative process, as part of the formal road closure.
“It is not an indication of when the road will reopen. We apologise for the inconvenience to the residents and businesses of Folkestone, but our priority is public safety, which we take very seriously.”
It comes as a campaign has been launched to save a historic Victorian toilet block, which has been out of use for decades, along the road.
The facilities – which are thought to date back to at least 1898 and were used by soldiers on their way to Europe during the First World War – were uncovered following the landslides.
The facilities include what appears to be six urinals.
Now, one resident has started a campaign to turn the disused toilet block into a memorial to those who died during the war.
Those leaving Shorncliffe Barracks would have marched down the Road of Remembrance, then known as Slope Road, on the way to Folkestone Harbour to reach the Western Front, passing by the facilities.
Speaking to KentOnline, Bob Mouland, 76, said: “I strongly believe and always will that those men gave their lives for us to be here today.
“This is an important part of First World War heritage and must be turned into a memorial.
“Its a vital for Folkestone, and it’s an essential piece of heritage from that time; we cannot allow that structure just to disintegrate with time.
“We must use it in the memory of those that were slaughtered, including the 500-odd men from Folkestone who lost their lives.
“This structure must be preserved. Just think of what was going through their minds as they made that walk from Shorncliffe Barracks.
“Personally, I have ideas for this site, but I want to know the people of Folkestone’s views as to what they would like, and we owe it to the relations of all those men who lost their lives.”
An online petition has been launched, which has attracted more than 250 signatures so far.
The campaign reads: “On January 27, there was a landslide at Road of Remembrance. The landslide uncovered a great piece of history – one that we can help to keep preserved instead of having it hidden in earth and debris for another 110 years.
“Now we are campaigning to the council of Folkestone and Hythe to turn the disused Victorian gent’s convenience into a memorial.
“Thousands of British Tommie's used these facilities while fearful that they might soon lose their wives and families, as most realised they would probably never returning to British soil.
“These men in their thousands marched down Slope Road (renamed Road of Remembrance in 1924) on their way to board steamers awaiting them at Folkestone harbour to cross the Channel to fight Kaiser Wilhelm of Prussia.”
The site officially closed in the 1950s after serving generations of the public since the Victorian era.
Included in his plans for a memorial, Mr Mouland would like to see a new path along the Road of Remembrance to allow pedestrian access to the toilets, and a plaque commemorating those from Folkestone who died.
MP for Folkestone and Hythe, Tony Vaughan is supporting Mr Mouland’s wish for a memorial.
He said: “I was pleased to meet Bob recently who is campaigning for a memorial, at the site of a Victorian urinal on the Road of Remembrance in Folkestone, to remember local soldiers who died in the First World War.
“When I first listened to Bob’s idea, I thought it sounded like an odd spot for a memorial.
“But it was, after all, along that road that some 10 million allied soldiers walked and perhaps stopped for a moment to use the facilities, reflecting on their lives, their families, and on what was to come next.
“I am glad to say that Bob persuaded me of his idea, which I hope will be supported by the district council who I believe own the land.”
A spokesman for Folkestone and Hythe District Council said: “Our primary focus has been – and continues to be – working with Kent County Council to understand and mitigate the landslips on the Road of Remembrance.
“We currently have no budget to carry out work on the historic toilet block, and there are some health and safety concerns associated with its location (being directly adjacent to what is usually a busy road with no footpath for pedestrians, for example).
“Having said that, we are always open to ideas brought forward by community groups and will consider any formal approaches.”