Wales and West Utilities, in partnership with Cornwall Council, will be carrying out essential gas pipe replacement works on Polmear Road, St Austell, starting Wednesday 8th October through to Christmas.

The work will happen in two phases, each lasting about 6 weeks.

Phase One: Multiway traffic lights will be in place at the junction of Cromwell Road, Porthpean Road, and Polmear Road.

Phase Two: Multiway traffic lights will be installed around the roundabout at Polmear Road, Charlestown Road, Mount Charles Road, and Holmbush Road.

Further information is below from Wales and West Utilities.

What work are we doing?

The works will be carried out in two phases;

Traffic Management for Phase One will consist of multiway lights on the junction of Cromwell Road, Porthpean Road and Polmear Road.  We will be there for roughly 6 weeks. 

Traffic Management for Phase Two will consist of multiway lights on the roundabout of Polmear Road, Charlestown Road, Mount Charles Road and Holmbush Road. Again, this Phase will take roughly 6 weeks. 

We will be working for approximately 12 weeks in total and we propose to start early October, taking us up to Christmas.

It’s part of our multi-million-pound, 30-year, gas pipe investment programme across Wales and the South West of England. As part of this programme, old metal gas pipes within 30 metres of buildings are being upgraded to new, long-lasting plastic ones. We replace over 400km of metallic gas mains each year, and we spend around £1.4 million on this programme every week. 

 

What is Wales & West Utilities:

Every day at Wales & West Utilities, our team of more than 1,300 skilled and dedicated colleagues do their very best to keep our 7.5 million customers safe and warm, with gas connections and a gas supply they can rely on combined with a level of service they can trust.

We don’t sell gas; instead, we use our extensive network of pipes to transport gas to homes and businesses throughout Wales and the south west of England. We respond to gas emergencies, and we invest £2m every week across our network, connecting new homes and businesses, and upgrading old metal gas pipes to new plastic ones so the communities we serve receive a safe and reliable gas supply for generations to come. 

We launched Wales & West Utilities in 2005, and since then we have worked hard to build our impressive and established reputation for delivering excellent customer service with safety, reliability and value for money at the heart of everything we do.

We are there for our customers 24 hours a day, 365 days a year – it’s a vital service and one that we are extremely proud to deliver.

We own and maintain more than 35,000 kilometres of gas pipes – enough to stretch from the UK to New Zealand and back again. Using those pipes – most of which lie hidden beneath your feet - we supply gas to around 2.5 million households and businesses, serving a population of 7.5 million people. We cover an area that stretches from Wrexham to Redruth, from the mountains of North Wales to the cliff tops of Cornwall, serving a mixture of cities, towns, villages and open countryside

 

Why are we doing this now:

We have planned these works in the winter months to avoid the summer embargoes. Due to the increase in gas demand in St Austell these work must be completed.

Installing new pipes in the area will also help us move towards net zero carbon emissions and improve our impact on the environment. It will also prepare the local gas network for the introduction of green gases in the future.

 

How will residents be impacted:

We always try to keep disruption to a minimum when we are working in local communities. If people need additional support during the time their gas supply is interrupted - such as alternative cooking and heating facilities, or any other assistance such as specific access requirements, we ask that they please contact us as soon as possible so we can put arrangements in place.