Morning:
14°c
No new pipes for road dug up 14 times
23.07.09
Residents in west London have been told two leaking water mains will not be replaced despite workmen having to dig up their road 14 times to fix leaks.
In the most recent incident on Richmond Way in Shepherd's Bush the road was closed to motorists for almost a month.
Resident Bobby Pugh said: "This is a disgrace and is down to the incompetence of the people filling in the road.
"Three times in a month they brought in maintenance equipment that was too heavy and actually crushed the mains. I draw the line at my pregnant wife being disturbed by the noise of the repair work.
"Thames Water has probably spent four times as much money repairing the pipes than it would have cost them to replace them."
A spokeswoman for Thames Water apologised for the inconvenience, but said there were no plans to replace the pipes.
"Unfortunately we have a big list of water mains that need replacing. Some streets are of a higher priority than this one."
