A BUSY road in Wokingham is set to close for 10 months while a multi-million pound water main is installed.

Nine Mile Ride in Finchampstead will be closed and split into phases to allow sections of the work to be carried out.

South East Water is spending more than £1.4m on installing a new water main as the current one has burst three times a year, on average.

The water company has started the first phase of work in Nine Mile Ride Gorse Ride South, Billing Avenue and Finchampstead Road.

Jeremy Dufour, project manager at South East Water, said: “This vital project will help us strengthen our network and ensure we can continue to supply top-quality drinking water to the area as the community grows.

“While we’re doing this work, we’re also taking the opportunity to replace an old water pipe in Nine Mile Ride which has come to the end of its working life. The particular pipe has burst more than 30 times in the last 10 years and is in need of replacing.

“Work began in Finchampstead Road this week. The first phase, in Finchampstead Road and Gorse Ride South, will take six weeks to complete and has been planned to take place in the summer holiday period. Work will then continue in Billing Avenue before moving on to Nine Mile Ride.

“The second phase of the project, in Nine Mile Ride itself, will take approximately 10 months and the road will be closed in small sections during that time. We anticipate this will begin in mid-September and our contractor will work as quickly and safely as possible.

“I’m really sorry for any inconvenience this causes but we have to prioritise the safety of pedestrians, motorists and our workforce.

“Information on diversion routes and changes to bus services can be found at corporate.southeastwater.co.uk/finchampstead.”