A WATER leak in Amersham Hill has been left to spill down the road for two weeks despite water bosses bringing in hosepipe bans.

The leak from a burst pipe near Wycombe train station was reported last week to Thames Water, which supplies High Wycombe, but so far nothing has been done to repair the damage.

This comes after Thames Water announced on Monday that a hosepipe and sprinkler ban will be introduced from Monday, April 3, following a 15-month drought in the South East.

Graham Sydney, 55, who works in an office on the corner of Amersham Hill and Totteridge Road, said: "Enough water to run all the hosepipes in Wycombe has been lost. It is wasteful."

Thames Water has sprayed blue paint around the leakage, but has not yet got round to fixing the problem.

Mr Sydney, from West Court, Downley, said: "When I saw the paint I thought they were on to it but nothing has been done.

"Everyone who walks past is looking at it. It just looks a real mess. If there was a frost and it all froze then it could be very dangerous."

Hilary Bennett, spokesman for Thames Water, said the leak had not yet been fixed because of road resurfacing which started further up the road in Amersham Road this week.

She said: "We thought it would be best to fix the leak while the road is closed for the roadworks because we would need to close the road anyway.

"This way we hope to keep disruption for drivers and residents down to a minimum. We have informed the council about the leak and advised them to grit the area if there is a frost."

The Thames Water hosepipe ban is the first to hit the region in 15 years, and more than 200 leaks are being repaired each day to try to save water.

Mrs Bennett added: "Although we do have leaks in our provinces, of which High Wycombe is one, the main problems we have are in London where the pipes are older and more prone to leaks."