Wellington Street is one of the main gateways into the town centre from Swindon’s railway station.

And work on it was a significant part of Swindon Borough Council’s attempts to give the area a bit of a facelift and make it more welcoming for visitors.

That work has been delayed through a combination of damaged water pipes under the road and the council’s contractors being asked to take-up and relay paving they’ve already put down, because the authority is not happy with what they have already done.

It means the work, which was meant to be finished by early next month, has been delayed significantly.

Thomas Haworth, spokesman for the borough council said: “The pipes underneath Wellington Street are extremely brittle, which is not surprising considering the drainage system is one of the oldest in Swindon. This has meant that on a few occasions our contractor has been forced to stop work to enable Thames Water to repair cracks in the pipes.”

He added that the paving already put down has to come up, but said it wasn’t quite because the contractors had used the “wrong type of grout” as has been reported in other media outlets. The grout had affected the finish so the decision was made to lay it without grouting.

Mr Haworth said: “We also recently took the decision to remove the sample paving that had already been laid on the side outside the Queens Tap pub as it was not up to scratch.

“Wellington Street is a key gateway into the town centre from the railway station and we want to ensure the work is completed to the highest possible standards. This also means that utility services will not be able to undertake any planned works for the next five years unless it is an emergency.

“The contractor has dealt with the challenges as efficiently as possible and we would rather we take an extra few weeks to get the scheme right than rush it to meet the original completion date.”

The scheme was originally scheduled to cost £850,000 and is part of a number of plans the council has to improve the town centre and make it more attractive for visitors, businesses and residents alike

The improvements also include separate paths for cyclists and pedestrians, and a zebra crossing over Wellington Street. The council said it expected the work to be completed in early June.

Bus routes will continue to be re-routed away from the street until completion.