Investment: £100 million (region total)
Where: Horsebridge Hill, IOW
Start: January 2026
Completion: spring 2026
What are we doing?
We’re replacing aging water mains with new plastic pipes to protect your water supply and reduce the amount of water lost through leakage. Some of these cast iron pipes have been in the ground for 100 years and despite being regularly maintained, they now need to be replaced to prevent bursts and issues with discolouration.
In Horsebridge Hill, we’re replacing 500 meters of water mains. We’ll do this by digging a narrow trench to lay the new pipe. We’ll make sure the area is safe before and during the work, and we’ll return after the pipe has been laid to connect it.
Replacing aging mains is part of an annual £100 million investment to reduce leakage across the region by fixing leaks faster, managing pressure across our network and upgrading water meters.
Useful information for residents and visitors
Traffic
During the work Horsebridge Hill will become one way system with no access towards Cowes. The map shows the diversion in place. Buses and emergency vehicles will still be able to use the road as normal via manual traffic lights.
Water supply
If you live along the project route you may lose water supply for no more than four hours while we connect you to the new pipe. We’ll let you know at least 48 hours beforehand — if you’re not home we’ll leave a calling card.
Access
We’ll work with you to make sure you’re able to safely access your properties/driveways during the work. You may need to follow the diversion route depending where on the road we’re working.
Working hours
Our normal working hours are 7.30am to 5pm, Monday to Friday, but we won’t start any construction work until 8am. Occasionally, we may need to work weekends. We considered working through the night to limit the impact on traffic but this was not possible due to increased noise levels and the safety of our teams.