Severn Trent is advising people travelling into Leicester City Centre from Boxing Day onwards to leave plenty of time for their journey as essential repair works will be taking place.

After a water leak was discovered on the Southgates Underpass on Vaughan Way in the city centre, Severn Trent has been in close communication with Leicester City Council to determine the best time to complete the necessary repair work.

To prevent disruption in the in the lead up to Christmas Day, and allow everyone time to complete their Christmas shopping, repairs will take place from Boxing Day.

During the works, Southgates Underpass will be closed heading south towards Welford Road. Traffic will be diverted onto St Nicholas Circle and onto Peacock Lane, with work expected to be finished before the new year if everything goes to plan.

Sven Brown, Water Networks Regional Lead at Severn Trent, said: “We’ve been working closely with the local council to determine the most sensible time to complete this essential work. And it was a priority that we tried to minimise disruption before Christmas Day.

“We know however that the road closure (heading south) from Boxing Day will cause some disruption so it's our priority to get this job completed as quickly and as safely as possible. We wanted to give as much awareness as possible, so everyone can give themselves plenty of time to make their journey into, and out of Leicester City Centre.

“We’d like to thank everyone in advance for their patience and understanding as our teams complete this work, and to everyone who respects the diversion that will be in place, and our teams working hard over the festive period.”

Severn Trent has also consulted with the emergency services to determine the best diversion route to allow them to move freely around the city during the works.