ST HELENS Council is to carry out drainage investigation works to reduce flood risk at one of the town's hotspots.

The local authority is to conduct the works at Islands Brow this week from Wednesday, June 14, which will involve cleaning, draining and fixing a pump close to the railway bridge.

To enable the works given the narrow width of the bridge, a road closure in both directions at the bridge will be required for the duration which is expected to last two days, with advanced warning and diversion signs in place.

St Helens Borough Council says the works see its continue a commitment to supporting local businesses and residents by reducing long-term flood risk at hotspot areas and follows on from a project in 2020 to remove silt from more than a thousand metres of Rainford Brook which has resulted in fewer flooding incidents at the hotspot on College Street.

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Welcoming the works, Cllr Seve Gomez-Aspron MBE, St Helens Borough Council’s cabinet member for strategic transport said: “We’ve experienced frequent flooding in this area over the years which has had a negative impact on businesses and residents due to lengthy road closures, so it’s important to carry out maintenance such as this to mitigate the risk long-term.

“The work carried out in the area over the past few years is clear to see. Key roads into St Helens Town Centre like College Street and Merton Bank Road which were constantly shut for days on end due to flooding haven’t had many problems of late and it has even opened up cycling routes along Sankey Canal which lays claims to being the first modern canal in England."

Cllr Gomez-Aspron, who is also deputy leader of the council, added: “The short-term inconvenience of closing Islands Brow for a couple of days while these essential works are carried out is outweighed by the outcome of ensuring this road is protected from incidents such as flooding as we look to achieve a key council priority of creating a safe and well-connected network which supports economic growth development and decarbonisation ambitions."