A BUSY city centre road is set to close for a weekend while flood prevention works are carried out.

Drivers can expect some delays and disruption as New Road, Worcester, will be closed from 8pm on Friday, April 13 to 6am on Monday, April 16.

The £1.2million works to raise a 200m stretch of New Road, by 15 inches started on January 8, and is expected to last 18 weeks.

Worcestershire County Council’s highways department took to Twitter this afternoon (Tuesday, April 3) to warn drivers about the closure.

A diversion via Hylton Road and Tybridge Street will be in operation.

Cllr Tony Miller, cabinet member with responsibility for the environment, speaking in January, said: "This scheme will help to keep Worcestershire moving during periods of severe flooding, allowing residents and businesses to function as normally as possible.

"The floods in 2007 and 2014 had such a huge impact on the city that we needed to review our flood alleviation strategies.

"The New Road scheme is part of our ongoing works, across the county, to reduce the impact of future flooding to residents and businesses."

The council has said the traffic-based economic benefits of the scheme will amount to £7.5m, while the wider economic benefits would amount to more than £2.89m.