Anglian Water has apologised ahead of a road closure next month which is set to cause disruption for tens of thousands of road users.
The B1150 Norwich Road in Coltishall will be closed for three days from Monday, February 19 to allow the water company to carry out repair works to the bridge.
It will be restricted use until midnight on Wednesday, February 21.
The busy route carries close to 10,000 vehicles heading between Norwich and north Norfolk on an average weekday.
It has led to Coltishall becoming known as 'Norfolk's bottleneck village' because of the large volume of traffic that uses its narrow humpback bridge over the River Bure.
Cars, lorries and farm vehicles all funnel through the village rather than taking much longer routes via Wroxham or Aylsham, or onto tiny backroads, to cross the river.
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Anglian Water has apologised ahead of the closure, recognising the disruption set to be caused for road users.
An Anglian Water spokesperson said: “We apologise in advance for the disruption to road users on Norwich Road in Coltishall as we plan to close the road from February 19 for three days to enable our teams to repair the carriageway.
“During a repair to a leak in the area, there was some superficial damage to the road and due to how narrow the carriageway is we will be closing the road for three days to enable our teams to complete the repair safely and efficiently.
“We understand the importance of the road to the local community and how frustrating roadworks can be, but these works have been carefully planned alongside Norfolk Highways to limit the impact on residents in the area.
“We thank you in advance for your patience while we carry out this essential work.”
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Diversion routes will follow the A1151 and B1354 through Wroxham and Hoveton.
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