Project to replace and upgrade water mains starts

Yorkshire Water Work being carried out on a road in Bradford, there is a water pipe visible and several diggers. There are red plastic barriers on each side.Yorkshire Water
The work is estimated to take around 13 weeks to complete, Yorkshire Water says

A project aiming to improve the water supply network in an area of Bradford has started.

Yorkshire Water's £418,000 scheme will see 680m (2,231ft) of water mains replaced on Oswaldthorpe Avenue and Burlington Avenue, off Gain Lane, Thornbury.

It is part of a £406m investment by the firm to replace more than 1,000km of water mains across the region by 2030. Mains have recently been replaced in Keighley, Bingley and Thornton.

Scott Gammon, project manager at Yorkshire Water, said: "We're targeting areas that are most prone to leaks and bursts so that, once the work is complete, we can deliver the quality and reliability of service that our customers expect."

A number of mains replacement schemes have recently been completed in Bradford, including a £1.5m project in Laisterdyke, a £700,000 project in Oakworth and a £335,000 project in Lower Wyke.

In April, a £1.5m scheme in Keighley and a £780,000 scheme in Bingley got underway, with a separate £3.1m project beginning in Thornton in May.

Local residents have been informed of localised disruption.

Gammon added: "We'll be working quickly and doing everything that we can to keep disruption to a minimum whilst we deliver this important work."

Contract partners Sapphire Utility Solutions is carrying out the scheme, Yorkshire Water said, with the project expected to take about 13 weeks to be completed.

Listen to highlights from West Yorkshire on BBC Sounds, catch up with the latest episode of Look North.