Severn Trent and CWaC Council work together to mitigate ongoing impact of essential works

Severn Trent’s multi-million-pound project to install a 3km water pipe in Chester continues to make good progress and is on track.

Teams are still working hard on the £16million Chester Resilience scheme which sees them currently working along Sandy Lane. They are confident that the section between Dee Banks fork junction and Walmoor Park will be completed within five weeks. 

Severn Trent continues to work closely with Cheshire West and Chester Council to mitigate the ongoing impact of these essential works.

It is understood that people have been impacted by the works in the Dee Banks area specifically, and the Council and Severn Trent have worked hard to develop a plan to address traffic build up and alleviate this as much as possible.

Councillor Louise Gittins, Leader of Cheshire West and Chester Council said:

“We know these works have caused inconvenience to residents. We have worked closely with Severn Trent to keep disruption to a minimum.

“We understand most local residents would have preferred Dee Banks to take the traffic that would have normally used Sandy Lane. However, this would mean that an unclassified road would see a significant increase in traffic volumes that it is not safe to carry.

“We really do sympathise with residents and the wider community but as the Highway Authority we have a duty to maintain safe roads and protect our network.

“We are considering an option to ensure two-way traffic flow on this section of Dee Banks, by introducing traffic lights from 19 August, as well as a diversion route being in place. We apologise for the continued disruption this will cause but Severn Trent’s works must be completed as quickly as possible.”

The traffic signals will be programmed with slightly longer gaps between changes, to control traffic flow sufficiently on the unclassified road, which could create some traffic queues. If it becomes apparent that motorists are ignoring these red lights, the Council’s Highways Service will need to introduce a one-way system, allowing traffic into Huntington (flowing south) but not out (northbound).

These measures will be needed until Severn Trent need to return to Chester Road at Caldy Brook to complete that section of their works. 

This is one of the biggest investments Severn Trent has made in the city, connecting Boughton Water Treatment works to Huntington Water Treatment Works. Our team continues to work seven days a week to get everything done as quickly and as safely as possible. 

Businesses that allow customers into their premises to purchase goods or services who might be affected are asked to contact the Business Loss Team - businessloss@severntrent.co.uk for further advice.  

For further information or to be kept updated on the works as they take place visit: 

www.stwater.co.uk/in-my-area/planned-improvements 

A private Facebook group for residents of this scheme to get updates and ask questions on the work has also been set up and can be found at: 

http://tinyurl.com/STChester