Major Calderdale road to shut AGAIN only three weeks after reopening from six-week closure

Yorkshire Water says it needs to do more work on the A646 Halifax Road in Charlestown, between Hebden Bridge and Todmorden.

It is the same stretch of road which was closed from December 13 until January 23 for emergency repairs to a collapsed sewer and damaged culvert.

The road will close for 10 days, starting from 8pm on Friday, February 14.

The work is to repair a section of sewer and improve the resilience of the wider section of sewer that runs under the road by reinforcing it with a structural liner, says the utilities firm.

It says the work will involve lining the section of sewer 65 metres upstream of where it was damaged before Christmas and should help prevent further issues with the sewer in the future.

James Harrison, head of customer field services at Yorkshire Water, said: “We absolutely understand the impact this closure will have following the closure of the same road in recent months but we want to make sure our sewer is as resilient as possible to reduce the likelihood of this happening again in future.

“We apologise for any inconvenience caused and we will be working as hard as possible to complete the work and remove the road closure as soon as possible.

"We will be working hard throughout the work to support the local residents and businesses, which includes arranging a shuttle bus for the duration of the work.”

Calderdale Council’s cabinet member for Regeneration and Transport, Coun Sarah Courtney, said: “We know this isn’t the news anyone in the upper valley of Calderdale wanted to hear and I completely understand there will be concern about what this additional closure means for people living, working and travelling in the area."

Yorkshire Water says its contractors will be working 24-hours-a-day from the evening of February 14 until February 17 to complete the repair, which will require the excavation of the 3.6m deep sewer.

The lining work will then take place between 8am and 5pm during the following week to reduce the noise impact and allow the lining work to set. The road closure will be in place throughout this time.