Action is finally to be taken to fix a sinkhole after seven weeks of delays caused by legal wrangling.

The hole was discovered on July 6 in the pavement adjacent to Hildenborough Crescent, opposite the Chilham Road junction, in Allington on July 6.

South East Water engineers were quickly on the scene and determined that there had been damage to a water main.

They closed the road and fenced off the area.

Since then, neighbours have observed very little work being done, despite assurances from South East Water that the company had the problem in hand.

It transpires that Kent County Council (KCC)and South East Water have been at loggerheads over the possible cause of the highway collapse – and therefore who should pay.

A KCC spokesman said: “It would be accurate to state that we have not been able to reach a shared agreement regarding the cause.”

Finally, after seven weeks, because of the inconvenience that the ongoing road closure is having on the neighbours, KCC has announced that it will take over the site from South East Water from next Tuesday.

KCC said: “We will excavate and fully investigate the cause. That will inform the design of the reinstatement to avoid future failures at this location, and enable the full re-opening of the highway.

“Kent County Council will then seek to protect taxpayers’ money by recovering its losses from South East Water at a later date.”

The highways authority said that it still could not give a date for the road to be re-opened, as that would depend on the results of its investigations, but it was likely to be weeks, rather than days.

In the meantime, a diversion via the A20 London Road and Castle Road remains in place.

It is the second highway collapse at the same spot. A previous collapse in September last year took several weeks to repair, but maybe in retrospect that wasn’t long enough.

Ward Cllr Cynthia Robertson (Lib Dem) said; “I welcome KCC’s decision to take over. This has gone on long enough and we need to get the problem sorted out and worry about who pays later.

“It is causing inconvenience: the No79 bus has had to be diverted, some residents are unable to access the postbox and others are finding it more difficult to get to the Mid Kent Shopping Centre.

“Although it is also true that some people have said they are enjoying the peace and quiet of having less traffic passing their homes.”

Steve Jupe, South East Water’s regional works delivery manager, said: “We’re sorry to customers affected by the sinkhole and the delay in its repair. Kent County Council will be taking over the excavation next Wednesday and carrying out all the reconstruction and reinstatement.”