To strengthen our water network and reduce the risk of supply interruptions caused by an increase in population, we have invested more than £1 million laying a new, two-kilometre-long water main in the Farnham area.

Project overview

We have installed the new pipework along West Street, from a point close to Old Town Mews, towards the A31 Alton Road.

Once work approached Cox Bridge Farm the pipe was diverted through private land towards Runwick Lane before crossing the Farnham-bound lane on the A31 Alton Road.

Work started on 9 January 2023.

Pipe route

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The project has been split into three phrases. The first phase included the installation of pipe along West Street, from a point close to Old Town Mews, towards A31 Alton Road.

A rolling road closure was in place to protect motorists and pedestrians from the working area.

Once work approached Coxbridge Farm the pipe diverted through private land towards Runwick Lane. This was the second phase of the project.

The third and final phase involved the pipe crossing the Farnham-bound lane on A31 Alton Road. Runwick Lane was closed for three weeks while a series of lane closures were in place along A31 Alton Road.

Road closures like this are a last resort but due to other utilities, the only area we could safely install the new water main was close to the centre of the carriageway.

All traffic management plans were agreed by Surrey County Council’s Highways department and we are really sorry for any disruption as a result of our work.

Diversion Route

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Graphic showing how a typical engineering scheme is designed and completed

Project timeline



Monday, 4 December 2023
16:45 PM

Project update

Our new two-kilometre-long pipeline in the Farnham area is now in operation, after testing and commissioning in September.

However, our reinstatement work in private land is currently on hold as this includes seeding and planting, which is subject to the weather and seasonal elements.

With the current wet conditions, we will now look to complete the reinstatement in the spring.


Monday, 25 September 2023
12:30 PM

Project update

We have now completed testing on the project in the Farnham area, with the main being commissioned last week.

We are now continuing with reinstatement in private land, with some outstanding work in fields as we look to close out the project.


Tuesday, 19 September 2023
09:30 AM

Testing continues

Testing will continue in the Farnham area this week. We will be undertaking commissioning works overnight on Thursday evening. This will not involve any excavation work but our teams will be out on the network to put water from this pipe into the Farnham area between midnight and 3am.

We are also continuing with reinstatement work in private land as we look to close out the project.


Monday, 11 September 2023
12:30 PM

Project update

Two-way traffic lights are currently in place in West Street as testing continues in the Farnham area today (Monday, 11 September).

We are also continuing with reinstatement work in private land as we look to try and close out the project.


Monday, 4 September 2023
08:30 AM

Project update

We have completed laying the water main for this project, with pipework testing now taking place across all sections.
Two-way traffic lights will be in place from today (Monday) in West Street as we continue testing in the area, while there is still some reinstatement work needed in private land.


Tuesday, 29 August 2023
08:00 AM

Project update

We have now completed laying water main on the project and Runwick Lane has now been re-opened, following on from the completion of works on the A31 earlier this month.

There will be some testing of the water main, including in West Street, over the next couple of weeks, while there is also some reinstatement needed within private land as we look to close out this project.

We will provide further updates on the project as we look to conclude our work in the Farnham area in the coming weeks.


Monday, 21 August 2023
09:30 AM

A31 works completed

All works on the A31 are now complete and all traffic management has been taken down, with the road now back in full operation.

The road closure in Runwick Lane remains in place this week as we continue to work on this final stage of the project, with the final section of pipework to be laid and testing continuing to take place.


Monday, 14 August 2023
16:00 PM

Project update

We are now working on the A31 and Runwick Lane in the third phase of the project.

Both lanes have now been crossed and a night connection, which was scheduled to take place on Thursday, 10 August, is now set to happen tonight (Monday, 14 August) between midnight and 3am on Tuesday, 15 August.


Tuesday, 8 August 2023
11:00 AM

Project update

The third and final phase of the project is now underway, with a temporary road closure in place on Runwick Lane.

We are now also working on the A31, with one lane already crossed and traffic management now in place to close the outside lane to allow access to the central reservation.

Work to lay the new pipeline will continue over the next fortnight, with a connection to our existing pipework being made on Thursday, 10 August from midnight to 3am on Friday, 11 August.


Thursday, 27 July 2023
15:30 PM

Project update

Work is continuing this week in private land in the field adjacent to the A31, with almost 1.8 kilometres of water main laid to date as we near the end of the second phase of the project.

The third phase is set to begin next week in Runwick Lane, with a temporary road closure in place from Tuesday, August 1 from the junction with the A31 Alton Road for around three weeks.

There will also be a lane closure on the A31 Alton Road, with this being set up overnight on Monday, 31 July.


Tuesday, 18 July 2023
08:00 AM

Project update

We are approaching the end of the second phase of the project as work continues in private land near Potts Farm.

Drilling has now been completed under a stream in land behind the Coxbridge Business Park.

When the second phase of the project is completed, we will move on to the third and final stage, working in Runwick Lane before crossing the Farnham-bound lane on the A31 Alton Road.

As previously communicated, Runwick Lane will be temporarily closed from the junction with the A31 Alton Road from Tuesday, August 1 for around three weeks.

There will also be a lane closure on the A31 Alton Road, with this being set up overnight on Monday, 31 July, while there will also be a night connection to our existing main.


Tuesday, 11 July 2023
08:00 AM

Project update

We are now reaching the final stages of the second phase of the project.

This week, we are continuing to lay water main in private land towards Potts Farm, with this phase of the project set to be completed in the coming weeks.

As a result, we will soon be working in Runwick Lane before crossing the Farnham-bound lane on the A31 Alton Road.

To lay the pipe safely, we will be temporarily closing Runwick Lane from the junction with the A31 Alton Road from Tuesday, August 1 for around three weeks.

There will also be a lane closure on the A31 Alton Road, with this being set up overnight on Monday, 31 July, while there will also be a night connection to our existing main.

We will continue to provide updates on the work as the project progresses.


Wednesday, 28 June 2023
08:30 AM

Project update

Work is continuing in private land near Coxbridge Farm, with almost 1km of pipe now installed as part of the project to date.

The work in private land is the second phase of the scheme and will continue until the end of the project to allow for reinstatement, with the pipe to be connected into the water main across the A31 Alton Road and Runwick Lane.

During the third and final phase of the project, Runwick Lane will be closed for three weeks while a series of lane closures will be in place along the A31 Alton Road.

We will continue to provide further information and updates on the work as the project progresses.


Monday, 19 June 2023
08:30 AM

Project update

The West Street section of main has now been laid, although two-way traffic lights will be in place between 7pm and 10pm on both Monday, June 19 and Tuesday, June 20 for testing of the installed pipework.

We are currently working on the next phase of the work to lay pipeline in the private land around Coxbridge Farm and behind Coxbridge Industrial Estate, which is expected to take until the end of July, before connecting the pipe into the water main across the A31 Alton Road and Runwick Lane.

During the third and final phase of the project, Runwick Lane will be closed for three weeks while a series of lane closures will be in place along A31 Alton Road.

We will provide further information and updates on the work as the scheme progresses.


Friday, 26 May 2023
11:05 AM

Project update

The new pipeline has been fully laid in West Street and we’re in the process of reinstating the road.

We’re expecting this work to be completed today, and therefore will reopen the road to traffic on the morning of Saturday 27 May ready for the Bank Holiday weekend. This is to allow the reinstatement to cure before putting live traffic over it.

Whilst we are in a position to reopen the road, because we are still in the process of testing the new pipeline traffic lights will be in place along West Street on the 30th and 31st May town side of Crondall Lane near Old Town Mews.

Once complete, our teams will then move onto the next phase of work to lay the pipeline in private land around Coxbridge Farm and behind Coxbridge Industrial Estate, before connecting the pipe into the water main across the A31 Alton Road and Runwick Lane.


Friday, 19 May 2023
08:01 AM

Project update

We’re continuing to make good progress installing the remainder of the pipeline in West Street, with about 50 metres left to lay.

On Saturday (20 May) at about midday we’ll begin switching the road closure to traffic lights to ease access for those travelling to the Arts and Crafts Market on Sunday. We’ll also lay down all the road closure signs.

The road closure will then be put back in place at about 18.30 on Sunday (21 May) once the market has finished.

We’re still on track to finish laying the pipe in West Street and fully lift the road closure at the end of May.


Thursday, 11 May 2023
15:45 PM

Project update

Our teams working to lay the new water main along West Street towards Coxbridge Roundabout are making good progress and therefore the section of road we’re now working in has moved.

As a result access to/from Bourne Wood Manor Care Home is now only possible via the town centre. This will remain in place until work in West Street completes at the end of the month.

Access to the residential properties between the Care Home and the roundabout will continue to be maintained.


Tuesday, 9 May 2023
17:29 PM

Project update

More than 550 metres of pipeline has now been laid in West Street and our contractors are continuing to work seven days a week to complete the project as soon as possible.

We are still expecting to complete our work and lift the road closure in West Street by the end of May.

Due to the Arts and Crafts Fair taking place on the 21 May, we have agreed with Surrey Highways to lift the road closure on 21 May and place traffic lights on the road for that day only.

For safety we will not be working that day because we cannot safely lay pipe whilst the lights are in place.

The road closure will put back in place on 22 May so that we can finish laying the remaining pipe.


Friday, 14 April 2023
14:31 PM

Important update

Our construction team is continuing to work incredibly hard to install approximately 800 metres of pipe within West Street as part of our £1.3 million water network upgrade project.

Unfortunately, the team has faced a host of engineering difficulties – mainly heavy utility congestion beneath the road surface – which has slowed their progress.

With approximately 400 metres of pipe left to install, our initial target of completing works in West Street by the end of April is no longer achievable.

This is despite working additional hours, including over the recent bank holiday weekend, to install as much water pipe as possible.

We are confident the utility congestion will ease once we progress beyond The Chantrys and the team will be able to lay pipe much faster than the current installation rate.

Following a discussion with the local Highways team today (Friday 14 April), it has been agreed our work in West Street will now continue until the end of May.

West Street will remain closed to passing traffic during this time and, of course, we will work as quickly and safely as possible to shorten our timetable.

Although this section of our three-phase project is delayed, it does not have a significant impact on the next two sections – within private land, along Runwick Lane and on the A31.

Due to the amount of utility congestion, deploying an additional construction team would not currently be productive. An extra team installing pipe would essentially block small pockets of homes and businesses in as we would not be able to safely let vehicles past the working area.

Our priority, as always, is installing the pipe in a safe and efficient manner while balancing the level of disruption to local residents and maintaining access to vital local businesses.

We’re incredibly sorry for the additional disruption the extension to our working time may cause and we’re grateful to the local community for their continued patience during this vital work.


Tuesday, 11 April 2023
15:38 PM

Project update

We’re continuing to progress with our pipe installation work along West Street with approximately 280 metres of pipe laid so far.

Due to engineering difficulties, including a vast amount of other utilities our team has had to navigate the new pipe around, progress has been slower than we had anticipated.

We worked additional hours over the bank holiday weekend to speed up our work and will continue to work as quickly and safely as possible.

Our project team will meet with the local Highways team this week to discuss an appropriate timescale of how long it will take to complete work in West Street and we will provide a further update to the local community as soon as we are able to.

Once again, we are incredibly sorry for any disruption our vital, £1.3 million water network upgrade project may be causing.


Wednesday, 29 March 2023
14:42 PM

Update

Our workforce discovered a burst water main in West Street, Farnham, which is in need of urgent repair.

Repair work is set to take place tonight (29 March) so our team can continue to install the new, £1.3 million water pipe from tomorrow (30 March).

We are very sorry for any interruption this vital project to futureproof drinking water supplies around the town may be causing.


Monday, 27 March 2023
11:10 AM

Update

More than 220 metres of pipe has been installed along West Street so far. We are currently working to the east of Crosby Way, meaning traffic must turn right at the roundabout and follow the diversion route towards Farnham town centre.


Tuesday, 7 March 2023
10:29 AM

Video update

We're continuing to make good progress with our work along West Street. More than 130 metres of pipe has been laid so far and West Street remains closed to passing traffic from a point to the west of Crondall Lane. We're very sorry for any disruption this work may be causing.


Friday, 24 February 2023
09:06 AM

Update

All pipe to the east of Crondall Lane has now been installed, meaning from Monday our team will begin installing pipe from the west of Crondall Lane, continuing towards the A31.

This means from Sunday, traffic exiting Crondall Lane via West Street will now have to turn left, as West Street will be closed towards A31. We are very sorry for any disruption this vital work may be causing.


Friday, 10 February 2023
09:30 AM

Update

The first customer connection was completed overnight on Thursday 9 February.


Monday, 23 January 2023
10:36 AM

Update

West Street is closed from today to allow our team to begin installing the new water main. We are very sorry for any disruption this vital work may be causing.


Monday, 9 January 2023
10:36 AM

Update

Our vital, £1.3 million project started today. We're currently working in private land and temporary traffic lights will be in operation in West Street, close to Coxbride Farm, from Thursday.

We anticipate closing West Street from Monday 23 January and we are very sorry for any disruption this vital work may cause.


Monday, 12 December 2022
10:36 AM

Update

Our project team held a drop-in session on Thursday 8 December to discuss our upcoming work in more detail with the local community.

We're really grateful to everyone who attended the event.

If you were not able to attend, you can download our information pack here(opens in a new tab).

Bus services

Route 65 (Guildford - Alton) will be unable to serve West Street in Farnham due to the road closure. Two weekday morning journeys will also depart Alton slightly earlier.

Please see here for more information(opens in a new tab) and important updates to the service.

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