15 February 2010
The market town of Longridge, in the Ribble Valley, has had more than £1 million pumped into it over the past 12 months upgrading its water, electricity and wastewater infrastructure.
North west utility giant United Utilities, which keeps the taps flowing to seven million customers, confirmed today its plans to inject a further £700,000 into the town upsizing hundreds of metres of sewers - removing the fear of flooding for local residents.
Engineers are set to return to the town's streets on Monday, February 22 to install 562 metres of new underground sewer pipes along Mersey Street, Green Lane and Wellibrow Drive.
Construction work along Mersey Street will mean restricted vehicle access to Eden Gardens and Lune Street, the firm warned.
Water bosses said to ensure the safety of the public and to allow engineers to work in the middle of the road they will erect 50-metre sections of fencing along the highway.
Mark Clinton from United Utilities said: "The flooding is due to inadequate and ageing draining system, which is in desperate need of repair.
"Disruption to traffic cannot be avoided due to the nature of the works, but we will endeavour to keep any inconvenience to a minimum."
To assist those customers directly affected with their queries, a customer advisor from United Utilities' partner organisation Balfour Beatty has been available on-site this week.
Such measures are designed to remove any confusion about impact of proposed construction work in their road.
Open-cut excavations to replace sewers and install new manhole covers will be carried out in phases.
The first set of works will involve upgrading sewers on Mersey Street, which could take up to 14 weeks.
Temporary road closures are anticipated during the works, but Mr Clinton added: "Where roads need to be closed, local traffic diversions should be in place - approved by the local highway authority."
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