Tunnelling machine named after Victoria Wood goes underground in her hometown

A tunnel boring machine, named after the late comedian Victoria Wood, is going underground at United Utilities’ wastewater treatment works in Bury – the town where she grew up.

It’s one of a number of projects across the borough as part of a £68.5 million programme to improve water quality in the Rivers Irwell and Roch.

The projects will help to reduce the number of times that storm overflows operate into the watercourses during heavy rainfall.

The company has used several tunnel boring machines (TBM), also known as "moles" or "worms" to excavate the tunnels during these works.

Tunnelling machine, ‘Victoria’, is part of a £25 million project to increase the capacity of the storm tanks at Bury Wastewater Treatment Works to six million litres – the equivalent of more than two Olympic size swimming pools - to reduce spills into the River Irwell.  Investment at the works will also improve processes and ensure that the wastewater is treated to higher standards. 

Work has also started on a £24 million project to construct a new 3.5 million litre underground storage tank on Nuttall Road, Ramsbottom to reduce spills into the Irwell. The new tank, which will be completed in 2026, will hold the equivalent of 44,000 bathtubs of water and help reduce the number of times that the storm overflow operates.

This summer, the company completed work on a new £2.5m underground storage tank, on land next to Glendale Avenue and Sunny Bank Road. The new tank can hold up to 500,000 litres of storm water and will reduce overflow operations into Parr Brook and the River Roch.

Water quality in the River Roch is also being improved with a £17M project to construct a new sewer under Openshaw Park. Tunnelling machine, ‘Rochelle’, spent three weeks tunnelling a 60m route and ‘Thomasina’ is currently completing the remaining sections of tunnelling a 75m route underground to make way for the new sewers which will be completed by the end of 2024. A new screen has also been installed to improve the quality of the water being discharged into the river.

Further investment is also being made at sites in Bolton and Rossendale, which will also help improve water quality in the River Irwell. 

It comes as United Utilities has submitted proposals to its regulator for 2025-2030 that would provide the largest investment in water and wastewater infrastructure in the North West for a century.