Railway Children village's water leak to be fixed

Work to repair a water leak that has led to "smelly" liquid flowing through a village's street is to get under way.

Yorkshire Water acknowledged that it had taken "longer than acceptable" to tackle the issue that has plagued Oakworth, near Keighley, since March.

Residents in the village – famous for being the location where The Railway Children was filmed - have complained about the pungent water running down Station Road for months.

A Yorkshire Water spokesperson apologised for the delay and said it was aiming to have the repair, which involved lining part of the sewer, completed on Wednesday.

Bradford Council's Worth Valley ward councillor Rebecca Poulsen said it was unclear exactly what was being discharged down the streets and feared it could be a health hazard.

She said residents were "very concerned" especially since the route affected was near the primary school and shops.

"I've had numerous complaints about this smelly discharge running from the corner of Dockroyd Lane down Station Road.

"It is very unpleasant and as it is coming from the sewer there are concerns it could be a health hazard."

Poulsen said she had been chasing Yorkshire Water to resolve the problem since the start of May.

She added: "We've been given different dates for the repair work to be done yet on each date no-one has turned up, and no repair has been done."

When asked about the delay, a Yorkshire Water spokesperson told the Local Democracy Reporting Service: "We'd like to apologise to local residents for the delay in completing the sewer repair on Station Road – it has taken longer than is acceptable.

"Whilst we have been aiming to complete the work as quickly as possible, we have had to reschedule twice due to traffic management requirements, and the team needing to attend emergency work elsewhere."

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