SHOP managers in Oxford city centre have complained about sewer repairs taking longer than expected.

Businesses in Cornmarket Street have been suffering from noise, dust and bad smells for several months since the work began directly outside their stores in May.

Originally it was thought the project, repairing part of the sewer under Frewin Court, would take about a month, but it is still ongoing and traders fear it might not be finished until October.

Luciane Davies, who manages the L’Occitane store, said the work had been affecting her Cornmarket Street shop “massively”.

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She said: “I can’t wait for it to finish. They just need to tell us when they will finish. They said it would take one month when they started but now they are saying October. They should stick with the deadline.”

Adam Khimji, team leader at Clarks shoe shop, added: “The noise is really annoying and it’s hard to have any conversation with customers.”

Laina Lebedeva, who manages the 3 phone shop, said: “I remember when it first started and I asked how long they might be and they said it could be three days or six months.”

Nearby Queen Street was shut from August 10 so that gas supplies could be diverted for the Westgate Shopping Centre’s redevelopment.

The street reopened on Friday.

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Traders across the city were warned last week that they faced a challenging two years due to roadworks, a lack of parking and the redevelopment of the Westgate Centre.

Oxford University retail expert Dr Jonathan Reynolds said although firms would find it tough, the overall outcome would be better for shopper and businesses in the future.

Carfax ward city councillor Ruthi Brandt said she sympathised with the traders in Cornmarket Street. She said: “Cornmarket Street can be chaotic at the best of times, but in a good way. I was wondering when work was going to be over as it has been there quite a while. It’s stressful when they push back the end-date. Hopefully it doesn’t affect traders too much.”

Thames Water spokesman Martin Wells said the company had been sending regular letters to businesses, informing them of any updates.

He added he was unable to give a date for when work would finish as it was currently waiting for a gas pipe to be diverted to allow workers to continue safely.

He said the fact there were two nightclubs nearby also meant they were unable to work at night.

Mr Wells added: “This is an unusually complex job in a very narrow street meaning we’ve been unable to use mechanical diggers and had to do all the work by hand.

“Other services in the area, like gas pipes, have also meant the work is taking longer than originally anticipated. We’re sorry for the inconvenience and we’re working hard to finish this repair as soon as possible.”