A £635,000 investment will see a section of sewer pipes in St Neots upgraded - with disruption expected in the coming months.

The work, which is due to be completed by the middle of October, will see nearly 200m of sewer pipe along Cemetery Road replaced with a bigger diameter pipe.

Anglian Water say it is in order to “keep up with growth in years to come” as the pipe takes most of the town’s wastewater flow.

A road closure will be in place on Church Street from next Monday (August 9) to September 17.

However, a full diversion route will be in place, with traffic diverted via Cambridge Street, Cromwell Road, Berkley Street and St Mary’s Street.

The road will then re-open under three-way traffic lights from September 20 to September 24.

There may also be a bit of an odd smell in the air – as the team will be working on a live sewer pipe.

Colin Isle, head of Anglian Water asset delivery, said: “Investing in projects like this enables us to enhance capacity and ensure customers can continue to use their taps and flush their toilets without a second thought.

“This pipe takes a substantial percentage of St Neots’ wastewater flow – which can be as much as 120 litres per second.”

There have been four bursts in the last 20 years in the area and investigations on the network found that 170 metres of pipe was damaged.

The work comes almost a year since flash floods hit the town last August.

Properties were inundated during the storms as floods rapidly built up across the town centre and surrounding areas.

St Neots mayor, Cllr Stephen Ferguson, submitted an FOI request to Cambridgeshire County Council shortly after, which showed that the majority of drains in the town has not been cleaned for five years.

Since then, extensive investigations have taken place across the district – after devastating floods hit Huntingdonshire again in December 2020.

For further updates and information on the sewer work taking place by Anglian Water, visit: https://www.anglianwater.co.uk/st-neots-sewer