A road which continues to be affected by extensive subsidence could be permanently closed.

Durham County Council’s Cabinet will be asked to agree to the submission of an application to magistrates to formally close the C31 Crakehill Bank in Hamsterley.

Due to the embankment failure and continued landslips, the road has been closed since 2022.

In that time, the council has evaluated all available options for the road. This included extensive geotechnical investigations to understand the cause of the slippage.

A number of designs were proposed to repair the carriageway and a budget of £1.7 million was allocated to fund the project.

However, while proposals were being developed, the embankment slippage accelerated and further sections of Crakehill Bank started showing signs of sliding.

Cabinet will hear that repairs to the carriageway will now cost over £10 million and, due to the proximity of the river and existing ground water, there is no guarantee that the road will not move again in the future.

In the interests of public safety, it is proposed that the council applies to magistrates for the highway to be closed under section 116 of the Highways Act 1980.

If approved, the council would carry out remediation works at the closure point. This would involve removing a section of the road to reduce the burden on the bank, regrading the embankment, and repairing the existing culvert.

It is proposed that the current diversionary route is made permanent, and the council would carry out maintenance as well as introducing revised road markings and additional signage.

Cllr Tim McGuinness, Durham County Council’s Cabinet member for rural, farming and transport, said: “Since the landslip was first discovered, we have been meticulous in exploring options to repair Crakehill Bank and we know the community has been hopeful that the road could reopen.

“Sadly, the slippage of the embankment has escalated beyond what we had expected and repairs are no longer viable, especially given that there is no guarantee that further subsidence will not occur.

“This has been a difficult decision and one that has not been made lightly. It is not possible to reopen Crakehill Bank and guarantee that the public will be safe or that the road will not slip again. Therefore, we are considering proposals to close the road.”

Cabinet will be asked to agree to the proposals when it meets on Wednesday 15 September.