A WEST Somerset village is facing NINE MONTHS of traffic disruption next year as Wessex Water carries out water supply improvements, with more to come a year later.

The £850,000 project to replace ageing water pipes is expected to start in January and take until September to be completed.

More work is also being scheduled on the A396 road to the north of Timberscombe in 2025, about which Wessex Water said it would tell villagers nearer the time.

In the meantime, villagers in Timberscombe are being invited to a public drop-in session next month to hear details of the 2024 scheme and have their questions and concerns answered.

The event will be held in the village hall on Tuesday, November 7, between 4 pm and 8 pm.

Wessex Water design engineer Egidijus Mockevicius said: “There will be major disruption to the roads in the village over a long period of time in order to complete this work.

“It is important that residents attend this meeting, if at all possible.

“The existing mains have suffered a significant number of bursts and causing inconvenience and disruption to customers in the area.

“Installing new plastic pipes will ensure improved water quality and a more reliable source for years to come.

“This work will take place in a number of different stages between January and September, 2024, and will be split into seven separate phases.”

Roads in Timberscombe which will be affected at various times include parts of the A396, Vicarage Court, Bemberry Bank, The Glebe, Forge Cottages, Jubilee Terrace, Church Street, Brook Street, Great House Street, Willow View, and from Willow Bank to Timberscombe Quarry and Orchard Way.

The work, which would mostly take place between 8 am and 5 pm daily, required complete road closures because of the narrowness of many carriageways and the work was planned in phases to allow other roads to stay open while some are shut.

Temporary arrangements for public transport would be put in place during any closure and access and exit to and from properties for residents, businesses, and emergency services would be maintained.

Mr Mockevicius said residents would be notified ahead of each phase.

Members of both Wessex Water’s operational and engineering teams will be at the drop-in session to answer questions about the scheme and further information about when and where the work will take place will be on display and available for people to take away.

Mr Mockevicius said the company would write to residents again after the public drop-in session to outline the scheme in full and tell them about the start of the first phase.

He said the firm also planned to regularly update residents throughout the course of the project, as one phase ended and another one was about to start.

Mr Mockevicius appreciated some villagers would need extra support due to age, ill health disability, mental health, or additional needs.

It could include easy access to water during a leak or outage, help reading their meter, or setting up a password for when water company staff visited.

Mr Mockevicius said people could register for ‘priority services’ on the company’s website here or call the firm on 0345 600 4 600.