Burst pipe repairs overrun on main Swindon road

A larger and deeper section of the road has had to be removed than Thames Water originally expected

A main road in Swindon will be closed for at least ten days longer than expected, in order to fix damage caused by a burst water main.

County Road near the town's magic roundabout was flooded on 18 June when a high-pressure pipe burst.

Thames Water originally said the road would be closed for about a week but repairs have proven to be more complex than expected.

The company now says it will now remain closed until at least 3 July.

The ageing metal water main which burst will be replaced by modern more flexible plastic piping

Pressurised water ripped-up several metres of the road's surface, resulting in the length of County Road being covered in several inches of water.

No homes were flooded but a nearby pub, the County Hotel, suffered significant damage.

A Thames Water spokesperson said: "We had hoped to open the road later this week, however, due to the scale and complexity of the repair our engineers require more time."

The burst pipe caused extensive damage to the road

The company confirmed the road closure will remain in place for at least another ten days.

Although engineers are on site working day and night, the depth of the pipe has made repair work more difficult, the spokesperson said.

"We'd like to apologise to our customers and businesses who have been impacted by the burst and to assure them that we are working hard to repair the pipe and open the road", Thames Water added.