City centre construction work starts on £14m floods project

The long awaited 14.4m scheme, which had initially fallen victim to a shortage of Government funding before being resurrected, is expected to be completed in the spring next year.

The Environment Agency's contractors, Interserve, are moving into central locations to build and strengthen flood walls and banks which will help to reduce the risk to 548 homes and 98 commercial properties.

The work will be carried out at Fisher Green, Borrage Lane, North Bridge and Alma Weir over the coming months.

Project manager Paul Scaife said: "I'm pleased with progress so far and the fact that we're now moving into the second stage of construction, in Ripon city itself.

"Residents will be able to see how the defences take shape and we will do our best to minimise disruption while work is under way."

Work began last October and diggers moved in at Birkby Nab in February to create a new storage reservoir on the River Laver upstream of Ripon to reduce water levels in times of flood.

When full, the reservoir will hold nearly 220 million gallons of water – enough to fill 400 Olympic-sized swimming pools. It will enable the walls and embankments in Ripon city centre to be up to three feet lower than they would have been without it.

The North Yorkshire city has been repeatedly hit by flooding, with six major deluges swamping properties since 1982.