EMERGENCY repair work to a burst water main on a key traffic artery in Ely is expected to cause almost a week of woe for motorists.

Anglian Water’s detection team spotted the burst pipe on Thursday (April 26) and immediately closed the road, causing gridlock at the heart of the city.

The work is scheduled to take five days to complete, with engineers having to apply for an emergency road closure order from Cambridgeshire County Council.

An Anglian spokesperson said:

“We apologise for having to close Nutholt Lane. We try to repair mains leaks as soon as we detect them to prevent more serious problems, which would cause greater inconvenience to customers and road users.

“Unfortunately we need to close Nutholt Lane to correct the fault. We intend to re-open the road as soon as possible.

“We have already arranged alternative routes for the emergency services with bases along the affected junction and adjoining roads. Emergency services will not be affected by the road closure.”

Anglian Water added that although only Nutholt Road was to be closed, a three-way temporary traffic light system would be put in place at the junctions of Lynn Road, Egremont Street and Nutholt Road.

HAVE YOU BEEN AFFECTED BY THE CLOSURE? Contact the newsdesk on 01353 645693 or email Daniel.mansfield@archant.co.uk.