An upgrade of the sewer main in Gascoigne Street will mean road closures in the area from Monday 5 September.

For the past few weeks Council staff have tried to repair the sewer pipes but they have faced constant blockages, collapses and breakages.

Council’s Operations and Maintenance Engineer, Stephen Rooney, said the team has been working three and a half metres below ground and has faced numerous issues.

“We initially fixed a broken pipe, but it collapsed so we patched it and now the pipe next to the patches has failed,” he said. “We are having issues with ground water and silt and the only solution is to put in a new sewer pipe.”

While work is underway, Gascoigne Street traffic will be diverted via Holdaway and Lucas Streets as the Gascoigne Street/Budge Street intersection will be closed however, access for property owners into the closed section of road will remain.

“Gascoigne Street residents will also be able to access their properties from the Lucas Street end,” Mr Rooney said.

“We are planning to start work on Monday 5 September, however if the sewer main fails in the meantime we will need to revert to ‘Plan B’. This involves putting a traffic management plan in place and setting up a pump at the Budge Street intersection to pump sewage past the failed portion of pipe,” he said.

The roads will be closed until the sewer is replaced and work is expected to take eight weeks.

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