Road closed near Newport for culvert repairs due to re-open this weekend
The end is in sight for workers repairing a road near Newport that closed due to an underground culvert collapsing.
The tunnel, which fell through in the village of Church Aston, has been under construction since the beginning of October.
Engineers from Telford & Wrekin Council have been carrying out extensive investigations to work out the best solution to repair the culvert and re-open the road.
Now, the council are filling the hole with structural foam to support the road in one of the last preparations ahead of its expected re-opening this weekend.
A well-type structure has also been uncovered under the road which sits on top of an old brick-built culvert, which in turn connects to a sandstone tunnel.
The brick-built section is believed to be a later repair to the original sandstone tunnel.
Historians think that the tunnel was commissioned by the Duke of Sutherland in either the 1820s or 1830s.
It is thought to have been used to supply water to Longford Pools for use in large scale farming activities as a direct result of the draining of Kynnersley marshes.
It was supplied by the Boundary Brook and ran roughly north east towards Church Aston, running beneath the village along the road known as Dark Lane before making a 90 degree turn west across the fields to the pools.
