Months of disruption from £7.6m pipe works

Drivers were today warned of months of disruption as projects to rip up roads and replace and maintain water pipes across the region were announced.

The works are part of a £7.6 million project by South Staffs Water that will see miles of pipework replaced.

Road closures and temporary lights will be in place during the projects, which will take place in Sandwell, Dudley and Walsall.

In Dudley, work will take place in Stallings Lane and the Dunns Bank area of Quarry Bank until September while a project on the Corbyns Hall Estate and High Oak Pensnett areas of Brierley Hill will continue until November.

In Walsall, motorists will be faced with roadworks on Wilderness Lane until the end of March, 2014, while in Sandwell engineers will be working on the pipes along St Marks Road in Tipton and on the Bristnall Hall Road area of Oldbury until the end of September.

Highways bosses said engineers will try to keep disruption to a minimum, but there may be some temporary road closures and traffic lights. South Staffs spokesman Kevin Watkins said the company had released approximate dates for the works.

He added: "The works programmes and traffic management for each scheme are co-ordinated with the highway authority."