Severn Trent are pumping £3m into a Nottingham street that is prone to flooding after concerns were raised by residents.
Shakespeare Street will benefit from an underground storage tank, which will hold water in times of thunderstorms and heavy rain.
Severn Trent said that Shakespeare Street is an area prone to flooding and a number of homes and buildings near to Nottingham Trent University had been flooded in the past.
Programme manager for the project, Chris Keys, said: "We are trying to stop that from happening in the future. We want to alleviate floods to properties.
"It is a low point in the system and when the capacity exceeds the amount the sewer can pass forward, its weakest point is Shakespeare Street."
The work will begin next week and last until February 2020.
The company is investing more than £3m in the project that will help prevent sewer flooding by creating a large underground storage tank.
Mr Keys added: "We know just how terrible sewer flooding can be for anyone, which is why this is a really important project for people who live and work in the area.
"When rain falls quickly it can fill the old brick sewers which, at the moment, doesn’t have the capacity to move the water away fast enough, so we’ll be installing a large underground storage tank which will help to take more waste water away, and so reduce the risk of flooding for everyone in the area.
"We have had flooding to properties in Shakespeare Street in storm conditions."
The company is working with Nottingham Trent University and Nottingham City Council, with the 20 metre deep tank installed beneath the junction of Shakespeare Street and Dryden Street.
There will be disruption as a result, with temporary traffic lights in Shakespeare Street for the first four months and Dryden Street, which has restricted access to vehicles, will be closed.
He added: "As we work, there will be some disruption, but we’re working hard to minimise the impact of this. There will be a lane closure on Shakespeare Street and a road closure on Dryden Street – both of which are in pedestrian zones.
"We’re sorry in advance for any inconvenience, but we really hope everyone will appreciate the huge difference this will make and see the long-term benefits once the work is complete."
A Nottingham City Council spokesman said: "Any measures that protect city properties from flooding are to be welcomed.
"We have worked with Severn Trent, liaising regularly with them and Nottingham Trent University to coordinate these works with our own district heating works in the area, to minimise disruption for the university, other stakeholders in the area and road users."
