NORTHERN Powergrid is due to start essential repairs to the 33,000 volt underground cable in the Park Road area of Guiseley.

The work, which is set to start on January 8, will repair vital infrastructure which normally supplies part of the network that powers homes and businesses in the Leeds Metropolitan borough.

The company says the cable also acts as an important connection to nearby towns to provide flexibility to move electricity around the network if required.

Ian Stewart, restoration and repairs manager at Northern Powergrid, said: “The essential repairs on Park Road are expected to take around six weeks, as long as there are no complications, and our contractors Balfour Beatty will be working seven days a week with extended working hours to help reduce disruption to the local community and motorists.

“Throughout the works the outbound lane of Park Road will be closed from Guiseley Retail Park roundabout to just below the Hawkhill Avenue junction. A diversion route will be set up to follow and access only will be available up to Silverdale Avenue.

“We appreciate the inconvenience this essential work to the network that powers the local community may cause and would like to reassure our customers that we will do everything possible to keep disruption to a minimum.”

Advance warning signs are already in place giving notice to motorists and Northern Powergrid has confirmed that local power supplies are not expected to be affected by the work. Northern Powergrid is the electricity distribution business for North East England, Yorkshire and northern Lincolnshire.