An €118 million project to upgrade Dublin's 100-year-old underground waterpipes has begun.
The five-year project, which will upgrade more around 800 kilometres of Dublin's watermains, started today in south-east Dublin on the outbound lane of Merrion Road and the junction of Serpentine Avenue.
Today's work is the start of a three-month programme of road works in Merrion Road, which will also include sections from Merrion Gates to Ballsbridge.
Dublin City Council deputy city engineer Tom Leahy said some disruption to commuters were "inevitable" but that detailed traffic management plans are in place to minimise the impact. "We are asking motorists to be understanding of this while this essential work is carried out," he said.
"We have decided to do the rehabilitation work in several small sections in order to cause the least possible impact on householders, businesses and commuters," he said.
The upgrade will be carried out in stages across Dublin city over five years to help minimise delays, a spokeswoman said.
Many of the existing watermains are cast-iron and were laid up to 100 years ago. The upgrade work will see them replaced with heavy duty polyethylene pipes.
Mr Leahy says because of the pipes' age and increased workload, "many of the old water mains are leaking or corroded, resulting in millions of litres of high-quality drinking water being lost every day and poor water pressure in some areas".
He said the biggest challenge facing Dublin was to meet the increasing demand for clean water "to cater for a continually growing population and to facilitate further industrial development".