South West Water says a large section of its essential sewer replacement work in Penryn has been completed following months of roadworks.

The company has been working on Commercial Road since January to replace and renew the sewer, as the existing one has become prone to bursts due to its age.

The £850,000 work is part of a significant investment programme by South West Water across the South West to improve the performance of its sewers and protect the environment.

By replacing the pipe in Penryn using a combination of new pipework and relining – a technique which creates a strong new pipe within the existing one – it will help future-proof the network and reduce the risk of any future bursts.

However the work has not been without controversy with long delays for traffic and many businesses along the road saying trade had dropped off a cliff while the roadworks were ongoing leaving many of them struggling to survive.

Falmouth Packet: Queuing traffic as SWW works to lay a major sewage pipe in Penryn Queuing traffic as SWW works to lay a major sewage pipe in Penryn (Image: Lee Trewhela / LDRS)

Ed Mitchell, Project Manager for South West Water, said: “We’re sorry for the disruption this main phase of work has caused and we’re confident these improvements will be long-lasting, which we know is important to the local community in Penryn.

We will need to come back once the sewer network levels have come down to complete the final work over the bridge as quickly as we can, and we will inform local residents and businesses when this will be happening.”

While the majority of this scheme has now been completed, the remaining relining work over Penryn Bridge and final connections will need to be carried out when sewer levels return to normal following the incredibly wet start to the year.

South West Water say it will be making every effort to keep disruption from this remaining work to a minimum. A dedicated Customer Liaison Officer will be on site to keep residents and businesses up to date with its progress, and the company will also provide updates on its website.