A BLOCKED sewer has been identified as the cause of recurring flooding incidents on a section of the M606 motorway.

The stretch of one of Bradford's busiest roads has flooded on three different occasions over the last few weeks, as the city has been hit by heavy rainfall.

Now Yorkshire Water has admitted the cause of the flooding and said it is working to rectify the problem to prevent further spillages on the road.

A Yorkshire Water spokesman said: "We are aware of flooding on the M606 under Staygate roundabout and would like to apologise to motorists affected by it.

"It has been caused by a blocked sewer which, after heavy rainfall, is prone to occasionally overflowing onto the motorway."

Flooding caused major traffic problems at the top of the M606 on Saturday. Lanes were closed on the northbound carriageway as the Highways Agency attempted to clear away the water.

Yorkshire Water says it is working with the Highways Agency to solve the flooding issue.

A Yorkshire Water spokesman added: "As an immediate response to this issue we are working closely with the Highways Agency and have installed pumps to pump water from the blocked sewer into a different nearby sewer to reduce the risk of it overflowing onto the motorway again.

"We are also progressing with a longer-term repair of the blocked sewer but are not yet in a position to say when this will be completed by."

A Highways England spokesman said: "We are aware of flooding issues on the M606 and apologise to drivers for the inconvenience this is causing.

"We are working closely with Yorkshire Water to address a problem with a blocked sewer and we have now installed some temporary pumps while work continues on unblocking the sewer."

Saturday's motorway flooding followed a similar incident on November 30.

The problems lead to motorists being caught in long tailbacks for several hours after the closure of the top end of the motorway, at junction 3, caused traffic disruption in the south of Bradford, as many adjoining routes suffered from the knock-on effect.

The flood water was several inches deep and affected a small area of the motorway beneath the bridge at the top of the M606.

The Highways Agency said that the flood water was about 15cms deep, with a 'gully sucker' machine had been sucking up the water.

The flooding follows a series of closures of the M606 taking place this month to allow the entire length of the motorway to be resurfaced.

Highways England said the work would create an improved road surface along the M606 in Bradford.

Contractors for Highways England are resurfacing the entire motorway, which is around three miles long. As part of the work reflective road studs will be replaced and the white lines repainted.

The work is expected to be completed by Friday, December 18.