Major work to reduce sewer bursts near Southampton has started.

Southern Water's £4 million scheme involves relining more than 500 metres of sewer at Ashurst Bridge near Totton.

This follows several bursts over five years, causing community disruption.

Southern Water's project engineer, Jason Masters, said: "We want to put an end to the regular disruption our customers in this area have faced over the last few years.

"We’re delighted to now get started on a solution that will make a real difference.

"By relining this section of sewer it will provide much-needed resilience to our network and reduce the likelihood of future issues."

The work is anticipated to last around three weeks, during which time dozens of tankers will be in use to manage flows and minimise impact on customers.

Mr. Masters apologised for the short-term disruption, saying: "We know this work over the next three weeks will be disruptive and we’re sorry for impact it is causing – but we know this will make a huge difference in the long-run.

"We’re sorry for the disruption this is causing."

Further work to alleviate issues in the area is planned over the next two years.

For more details, visit the Southern Water website.