BRIGHTON is braced for gridlock as the city’s busiest bus route is set to be dug up.

There will be two months of roadworks while North Street is resurfaced this autumn following damage caused by the replacement of Victorian water mains ten years ago.

About 100 buses an hour use the road, leading to fears that journeys will be significantly delayed.

As yet there is no start date for the work on the 400 metre stretch of the road between the Jubilee Clock Tower and East Street.

But Southern Water said it planned to have it completed before the Christmas shopping period.

Andrew Boag, chairman of the Brighton Area Bus Watch, said: “Our concern is that it will cause a lot of disruption for bus passengers. It can make bus services very unreliable. It has to be done but the council and bus service need to work together to minimise the impact

“North Street, for the buses, is absolutely critical. It’s a shame because the buses have actually been running pretty well recently.”

Mr Boag said it was helpful to avoid the busy summer season as diversion routes usually take buses along the seafront.

In a statement Southern Water said: “Co-operating closely with our colleagues at Brighton and Hove City Council, we have developed a clear plan to carry out important road repairs to North Street in Brighton.

“The programme of work is expected to take around two months to complete, a much shorter period than originally envisaged, and is due to get under way this autumn.

“It will see the northern half of the roadway strengthened and resurfaced.

“We are currently finalising the detail of our proposed plan. The revised timetable for the repairs follows a detailed review of the various engineering options available. Although this meant it took a little longer to develop our plan than first thought, it has enabled us to identify the best approach possible.”

The company said it would be providing “a durable road surface for the years ahead while minimising any disruption and inconvenience”.

North Street has suffered from successive years of slapdash repairs. When the water main was originally replaced in 2007, the replacement surface was not strong enough to cope with the heavy volume of traffic. Traders said repairs in 2012 costs them thousands in lost business.

Brighton and Hove Bus Company refused to send vehicles down the road in 2015 because the surface was badly damaged, then blamed a drop of more than a million journeys on roadworks.

A council spokesman said: “Both the council and the water company are acutely aware of the need to keep city centre transport systems moving.”