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Eastern Road, Portsmouth Update

Find out more about our work to replace a burst sewer on the Eastern Road and how this may impact you if you're travelling in the area.

Latest update: Tuesday 21 November 2025

From Monday 5 January 2026, Eastern Road will be closed southbound between the junctions of Burrfields Road and Hayling Avenue for up to 8 weeks. 

Please plan your journey and consider alternative routes into the city, as delays will be highly likely at times. Allow extra time when travelling around the area and using the diversion routes.  

This southbound closure is essential, as significant excavations are now required to fix the burst sewer main following the findings of the recent site survey.

The long-term £2.5m solution will strengthen Portsmouth’s pipeline, using innovative lining technology to futureproof this section of the city’s sewer network for years to come. 

We’re sorry for the inconvenience caused and would like to thank the people of Portsmouth for their ongoing support and understanding.

Drivers can still travel southbound on Eastern Road from the Hayling Avenue junction.  

Drivers travelling southbound on Eastern Road will not be able to turn left to access Harbourside Park and Miller & Carter Steakhouse.

Drivers will also not be able to exit this area to drive southbound on Eastern Road.  Access to this area will be eastbound via Burrfields Road and northbound via Eastern Road.   

Shared footpath and cycle route will be closed from the Burrfields Road junction to the junction of Sword Sands Road. The coastal path will remain open.

Stagecoach services, 14, 19 and 13 will still operate. Diversion routes are being finalised to minimise disruption. Any temporary relocations of bus stops will be communicated prior to January.  

These works have been collaboratively planned with Portsmouth City Council to minimise disruption to the local community and avoid clashes with other essential works on major southbound routes. 

  • No planned daytime lane closures on Eastern Road between now and the end of this year.  
  • Nightworks (10pm onwards) may occur until Tuesday 23 December, with one lane closed southbound between Burrfields Road and Hayling Avenue.  
  • Full access will remain available to Harbourside Park and Miller & Carter Steakhouse.
  • Shared footpath and cycle route remains open (except during night lane closures).
  • No disruption to bus routes  .
  • No lane closures are planned on Eastern Road over the Christmas and New Year period from 8pm on 24 December to 4am on 4 January.
  • Full access will remain available to Harbourside Park and Miller & Carter Steakhouse.
  • Shared footpath and cycle route remains open.
  • No disruption to bus routes.

Previous updates 

Following our site survey, the repair work on the sewer has been rescheduled to early January 2026. This means there will be no daytime lane closures on Eastern Road for the rest of this year.

Between now and Tuesday 23 December, there will be some night works that will require one lane closed southbound between the junction of Tangier Road and Burrfields Road, while minor works are carried out.

From 6am Tuesday 11 November, the shared footpath and cycle route will reopen for the rest of the year. Emergency access to Harbourside Park will be maintained at all times.

We are working closely with Portsmouth City Council and keeping residents and commuters informed to minimise disruption to the local community.

The long-term £2.5m solution will strengthen Portsmouth’s pipeline, using innovative lining technology to futureproof this section of the city’s sewer network for years to come.

We would like to thank the people of Portsmouth for their ongoing support and understanding.

Following the burst sewer pipe on Eastern Road in Portsmouth that occurred on 3 September, our teams need to repair an affected traffic lane and footpath.

Engineers will continue work during the night on this week on Thursday and Friday, starting in the evening around 20:00hrs and finishing in the morning at 05:00hrs.

During the night - Both lanes southbound will be closed between the junctions of Burrfields Road and Tangier Road while the night time work is carried out and diversions will be in place for drivers.

During the day - One lane southbound will remain closed.

Both northbound lanes are unaffected by the current works and will remain open.

The road and footpath repair work are scheduled to be complete on Wednesday 17 September at 05:00hrs and both southbound lanes are then expected to be fully open after the concrete and asphalt has set.

We are also preparing for the repair of the rising main and lining of the sewer pipe to provide a long-term solution. This work is scheduled to start in October.

This gives us time to order the necessary equipment for the replacement and prepare costings. We will need to close one lane southbound to carry out this work when it starts in October.

We are working with Portsmouth City Council and keeping residents updated, in advance of our return to carry out the repair and lining of the rising main.

Following the burst sewer pipe on Eastern Road in Portsmouth that occurred on 3 September, our teams need to repair an affected traffic lane and footpath.

Engineers will continue work during the night on this week on Thursday and Friday, starting in the evening around 20:00hrs and finishing in the morning at 05:00hrs.

During the night - Both lanes southbound will be closed between the junctions of Burrfields Road and Tangier Road while the night time work is carried out and diversions will be in place for drivers.

During the day - One lane southbound will remain open.

The road and footpath repair work are scheduled to be complete on Saturday 13 September at 05:00hrs and both southbound lanes are then expected to be fully open.

We are also preparing for the repair of the rising main and lining of the sewer pipe to provide a long-term solution. This work is scheduled to start in October.

This gives us time to order the necessary equipment for the replacement and prepare costings. We will need to close one lane southbound to carry out this work when it starts in October.

We are working with Portsmouth City Council and keeping residents updated, in advance of our return to carry out the repair and lining of the rising main.

We thank commuters and residents for their continued patience.

There is a burst sewer pipe on the Eastern Road, Portsmouth, that occurred on Wednesday morning, 3 September. This is close to the junction with Burrfields Road.

Both lanes northbound are now fully open and one lane remains open Southbound, as of 07:30hrs Thursday 4 September.

A diversion remains in place for the footpath as this is close to the immediate location of the burst.

We are now preparing for the repair of the rising main and lining of the sewer pipe to provide a long-term solution. We are aiming to start this work in October.

This will give us time to order necessary equipment for the replacement and prepare costings. We will need to close one lane southbound to carry out this work.

The footpath will remain closed for safety reasons until we complete the replacement, diversions are in place during this time.

We are working with Portsmouth City Council and keeping residents updated, in advance of our return to carry out the repair and lining of the rising main.

We thank commuters and residents for their continued patience.

There is a burst sewer pipe on the Eastern Road, Portsmouth, that occurred on Wednesday morning, 3 September. This is close to the junction with Burrfields Road.

Our teams are on site and we have reconfigured our network to manage flows and stop the leak. We are currently planning the best course of action to repair the sewer pipe.

There is currently one lane open Northbound and one lane open Southbound.

Drivers are advised to allow extra travel time due to the traffic management needed to work on the sewer pipe repair.

We apologise to commuters and residents for the inconvenience caused.