A six-week project to replace a troublesome water main buried under the A249 will begin this month.

The pipe has burst five times in recent years, flooding the carriageway and leaving 83 homes and businesses along the A road, and near Stockbury, without water.

The £240,000 project, which will be carried out by South East Water, will begin on the Sittingbourne-bound carriageway on Monday, January 12 between the Hayes Lane and Steps Hill Road junction.

Chris Love, delivery manager at South East Water, said: “We have an obligation to ensure our water supply is reliable and replace pipelines which are failing.

"This work is so important for the residents and businesses affected by previous bursts.

“The A249 is an extremely busy road and as a result the safety of motorists and our contractor is our top priority while this upgrade is taking place.

“We have re-looked at our plans to further reduce disruption to motorists and have made changes which will ensure that both lanes on the northbound carriageway can be used during the evening rush hour.

“Lane closures and speed reductions will still be necessary at times to provide a safe working area for our contractor and to ensure that vehicles can pass at a safe distance.”

The project will see 710 metres of old water pipe replaced with a new and tougher plastic one.

Work on the Sittingbourne stretch will last for five weeks, with one lane closed every day from 5am to 3pm and a 50mph limit will be in place at all times.

Between 3pm and 5am the inside lane will be narrowed, although the outside lane will be unaffected.

Two weeks of work will also take place on the Maidstone-bound carriageway from Monday, February 2 between 9.30am and 3.30pm.

This will see a one lane closure and a speed limit of 50mph enforced between Steps Hill Road and Stockbury.

These will be in place from 9.30am to 3.30pm Monday to Friday.

Outside of these times both lanes will be open.

A one week temporary road closure on Steps Hill Road will begin on Monday, February 16.

This is the third time South East Water have tried to the upgrade old and unreliable water main.

Last year the Company tried to replace it twice, once in January then again in September.

These projects had to be called off because traffic problems in the area put extra pressure on the major road which meant work had to be stopped.

Dave Tomsett, chairman of Stockbury Parish Council, said: “We are keen to ensure this water main is replaced as soon as possible to stop residents of our village going without water when the pipeline bursts.

“When bursts occur there is then further disruption to motorists on the A249 while repairs are carried out, something we are keen to avoid.”