A BUSY road in Bicester will remain closed until at least the end of today after a pipe exploded and flooded the area yesterday afternoon.

The incident took place at about 5pm after which Thames Valley Police shut the Banbury Road in both directions.

Engineers from Thames Water are currently on site and are not likely to finish repairs and be away from the road until Monday, October 10.

The road is still closed beceause a traffic light needs to be removed from a pedestrian crossing in Banbury Road to be able to access the pipe.

Once it is opened traffic will still be single-file.

The affected pipe is 9" in diameter. The burst did not affect local water supply but some people in the area may have had low pressure.

Thames Water spokesman Stuart White said: "We're sorry to anyone affected by our burst pipe. This is a complicated repair job as we need to remove part of a pedestrian crossing, but we're working as fast as we can and hope to have the road reopened this evening."

Oxfordshire Fire and Rescue Service was also at the scene yesterday.