Carlisle

Why are we carrying out this work?

We're constantly working to improve the supply and quality of your water so you continue to receive clean, fresh water for your morning shower and to enjoy a great cuppa.

Some of the pipes which supply water to almost 43,000 properties in the Carlisle area are over 90 years old. Over time natural mineral deposits have built up inside, although these deposits are not harmful, they can sometimes cause the water to become discoloured.

In February 2016 we started a £14 million investment programme to clean and refurbish over 32km of water pipes to improve the quality of water for customers in the Carlisle area. Our work will take around four years to complete and will be split across ten projects.  The overview map indicates where we'll be working (PDF 127KB opens in a new window).

We'll be using a variety of methods which will include:

• Inserting new durable pipe into the existing cast iron water main
• Constructing completely new sections of pipe to replace the existing water main
• Using hi-pressure water jetting or pulling sponge swabs through the main to clean it   

Keeping you updated about our current and next stages of work

Warwick Road area

Our team are currently working to refurbish two large water pipes that run along Montgomery Way and Warwick Road (Projects 4 and 5).  Thank you for your patience while we're carrying out this work - we do understand that roadworks are never welcome and we're doing all we can to minimise the disruption for the community and road users while we're improving the water pipe network in Carlisle.

Our routine tests have indicated that a section of the installed pipe has not met our strict standards, so the team will need to replace the section from Botcherby Bridge towards Greystone Road. The council's highway team already have some temporary traffic lights in place while they carry out work, so we're taking the opportunity to work together and minimise the disruption by extending the working area so we can also complete our work.

There will be some traffic management required while we complete this work which is detailed in the table below. 

You can also find out more information in our project leaflet (PDF 1.3MB opens in a new window). 

Milbourne Street area

Our next stage of work (project 10) involves  renewing the water pipe which runs along Milbourne Street, Milbourne Crescent, Charlotte Street, Lorne Street and Randall Street (Milbourne Street overview map PDF 101KB opens in a new window).  The work started on Monday 23 September and is expected to take around 3 months to complete. The work will be carried out in stages and will require some temporary road closures and traffic management to be in place - so our team can complete the work safely. Further information is detailed in the table below.

How our work may affect you

We're carrying out this important investment to improve the water network in Carlisle, ensuring customers can receive a reliable and high quality water supply for many years to come

Temporary changes to the appearance of your water supply

During our work there is a possibility that you may experience a slight discolouration to your water supply.  We'll do all we can to prevent this from happening, but we need to take each section of pipe out of operation as our work progresses. 

To ensure we keep taps flowing to homes and businesses, the water will be rerouted and flow direction changed within the pipe network.  This can disturb the sediment, and result in some temporary short term discolouration which we understand can look unpleasant and tends to be more noticeable when filling a glass or running a bath.

Discoloured water is unlikely to be harmful  and can often be cleared by allowing the first incoming cold water tap (usually in the kitchen) to run at a trickle until it clears.  This can clear quickly, but could take longer as it is dependent on how much of the mineral deposit has been disturbed.

Alternatively the water may appear 'cloudy' or 'milky' which is often a result of trapped air while we've been working, this generally disappears as the air escapes from the pipes. If a glass is filled and left to stand for a few minutes, you should notice that tiny air bubbles will rise to the surface and the cloudy appearance will disappear.

Overnight work

For some stages of the project we'll use high pressure water jetting to flush the pipes and remove the mineral deposits from the network.  This work often takes place overnight when there is less demand for water. We will be using equipment that will generate noise, however our teams will do all they can to ensure any disruption is kept to an absolute minimum.

Traffic management

We'll be carrying out our work in phases which may require temporary traffic management, lane closures and on occasions we may need to temporarily close roads.

Don't worry, if you live or work in the area, we'll write to customers in advance of the work starting to provide further information about how our work may affect you and provide updates. We'll also hold local community drop-in sessions as our programme of work progresses.

Thank you for bearing with us while we carry out our work. If you have any queries about this work please call us on 0345 672 3723 quoting project number AMEY U.80018815. We'll be happy to help.