SEWAGE will be channelled along Boscombe’s promenade and cliffs via an overland pipe while emergency underground repairs are carried out.

A steel pipeline, measuring about half a metre in diameter, will divert waste away from a damaged section of the 18m deep ‘Bournemouth coastal interceptor sewer’ - which serves the bulk of the borough’s households.

Bournemouth Echo:

Picture: Wessex Water 

The overland pipe will be 2.4km long, bridging the gap between the nearest access points in Boscombe Chine Gardens and Montague Road.

It will travel from the gardens along the Promenade and Boscombe Overcliff Drive to the Fisherman’s Walk footpath and back up to Montague Road.

According to a spokesman from Wessex Water the pipeline will be “fenced off” and laid at the kerbside along the route.

Diverting the sewage will allow engineers from Wessex Water safe access to place a new lining and supports in the damaged sewer pipe - which is thought responsible for the subsidence in Percy Road last month.

Percy Road will remain closed for several months while the works take place until at least April 2017.

James Rider, the firm’s chief operating officer, said: “We have chosen a route for the pipeline that avoids major roads to minimise disruption to the area.

“While we appreciate that this may cause some inconvenience, using a temporary overland pipe will mean we can complete repairs to both Percy Road and to the larger sewer.”

He added: “While there may appear to be little happening on the ground, we have specialist engineers working in the 1.8m diameter sewer that is deep below ground.”

Work to install the temporary pipe will take place within the next two weeks.

It is anticipated that all of the pipeline will be installed by the end of December, with repairs to the deep sewer expected to be finished by the end of February.

After this, repairs to more shallow utilities and the road surface in Percy Road will take place.

The work follows an investigation into the subsidence, which detected sand and groundwater in the coastal interceptor, suggesting the pipe was damaged. The cause is still unknown.

Mr Rider added: “We apologise for any inconvenience caused by our emergency repair work and thank local residents for their continued patience.”

Back in 2012 Percy Road was closed for several months while engineers carried out repairs to the lesser sewer pipe some seven metres underground.

The coastal interceptor was built in the 1970s to channel the town’s waste to the Holdenhurst treatment works.

While Percy Road is closed a diversion is in place via Michelgrove Road, Boscombe Cliff Road and Byron Road.

For more information visit www.wessexwater.co.uk/PercyRd.

Wessex Water has said the work is taking longer than expected due to the “depth of the sewer and the challenging ground conditions”.