BUSINESSES in Banbury have been left picking up the pieces after a burst water main closed North Bar Street for a week.

Engineers from Thames Water were called to the scene after the 12in wide pipe burst in the early hours of August 15, sending floodwater coursing down the street.

Throughout the subsequent repairs, which concluded on August 22, the road was shut – leading to a reported drop in footfall from several firms in the area.

Ilja Harvey, who runs deli and Dutch pancake house Little Amsterdam, said she believed her business had lost in the region of £3,000.

She said: "We lost quite a bit of money. I didn't close any events but we didn't have any people turning up, and it's my busiest time of the year.

"I am absolutely asking for compensation and we have started pursuing that with them."

She added that "wonderful" customers had started making a special effort to return following a post on Facebook imploring people to come in despite the closures.

Elsewhere Georgina Worrall, the manager of the Dog and Gun pub further along the road, said staff had also noticed a dwindling number of punters during the week.

She said: "The main difference was that taxi drivers wouldn't come down the road so we had quite a few problems, so people stopped coming out.

"We probably lost out. The week was really quiet, and it was quite frustrating because we weren't working as quickly as we could have."

The key drive-through route was shut between Horsefair and the junction with Southam Road while a four-metre length of pipe under the car park was cut out and replaced.

Engineers also resurfaced 530sq m of the road, pavement and car park – just a little more than the area of two tennis courts.

Luke Reeves, sales manager at Mark David Estate Agents, said despite the work he had seen long periods of what looked like inactivity.

He said: "It took a long time to fix but it's no surprise it took a long time. The first day they had about 20 guys there, just walking around. They didn't do anything."

Thames Water spokesman Stuart White said the road had to stay closed while staff made sure the area was safe, with no hidden 'voids' under the surface.

When a highly pressurised pipe bursts the force of the water can wash away soil, sand and gravel, leaving gaping holes under new tarmac not stable enough to support vehicles. Ground penetrating radar was used by crews to scan the road and check for voids.

The company also invited any applications for compensation. Mr White said: "We worked over the weekend to finish the repair as quickly as possible, and did our best to keep people updated on our progress, including signs around the area to say businesses were open as usual.

"When the pipe burst the high water pressure caused a lot of damage to the surface, which is why we had to shut the road to do the repair.

"We’re sorry for the disruption the work caused and any business owners who feel they’re out of pocket from the closure can contact us for a claims form."