Wolverhampton road set to reopen after burst pipe causes days of disruption
Traffic at a busy city junction where a burst pipe has caused tailbacks for almost a week was due to return to normal tonight.
Deans Road in Wednesfield has been shut in one direction since Friday, affecting northbound traffic between Wolverhampton Road and Deansfield Road.
The pipe burst several weeks ago, according to local residents, and water could be seen gushing down the road earlier this week.
Sandbags were laid by Severn Trent Water staff to control the flow, while some homes in the area were left without running water.
This week's sub-zero temperatures meant some of the leaking water froze on the road, making for a treacherous walking surface.
John Corbett, an 87-year-old retired engineer, from East Park, slipped over in the icy water earlier this week.
He said: "I'm soaked through. It's an absolute shambles. It's been going on for ages now. It doesn't tell you where to go or anything. I could have been hurt, luckily I'm just a bit wet."
The pipe is now repaired and all homes have been reconnected to the mains supply. Deans Road was expected to be open as normal from around 11pm, according to Wolverhampton council.
Severn Trent had been working all week to fix both the pipe and the damaged road surface.
A spokesman for the water company said: "We're really sorry the repair took longer than planned.
"Unfortunately due to the location of the leak a road closure was put in place to allow our teams to work safely and to keep road users safely away from the work area.
"Again we'd like to apologise for any disruption this caused."
