A HIGH-tech investment made in the wake of severe flooding has already saved the region’s economy almost £600,000, it has emerged.

Transport to and from the region was brought to a virtual standstill earlier this month when the Great North Road had to be closed after it was inundated by water near Catterick.

Hundreds of motorists were left stranded and the misery only came to an end after 10 hours of continuous work using a newly-acquired “superpump.”

Contractors for Highways England pumped about 2.5m litres of water - the equivalent to an Olympic-sized swimming pool - from the A1 carriageway, sending it directly into the River Swale.

And it has since been estimated the flooding would have cost the economy £587,000 more in time and delays if standard pumps had been used.

The pump was bought after similar flooding in the same area in 2012 led to the closure of the northbound A1 for two days after heavy rain overnight flooded the road and left it impassable.

Highways England service delivery manager Nicholas Adshead said: “Last time the A1 at Catterick flooded back in 2012 it took just over two days to clear but thanks to the new high-volume pump it took us less than ten hours, saving the economy more than half a million pound in time and delays.

“Luckily incidents like this are rare but, thanks to the new pump, we were able to remove 2.5 million litres of water.

“Our focus is on keeping traffic – and therefore the country – moving. This is a major step forwards in tackling flooding and limiting disruption on the network, minimising the impact on the region’s economy.”

Highways England is the only authority apart from the fire service to own a high volume pump of the type.

Located at Bradbury, the pump has to be operated by a specially trained team. It can be set up in less than an hour to clear thousands of litres of water from flooded areas and can be quickly deployed anywhere in the UK in the event of severe flooding.

Peter Hancock, the network manager for contractors A-one+, said: “The sheer quantity of water on the A1 was unbelievable and even as we were pumping it away it was backfilling from the fields on either side of the road.

“The power of the pump meant we were able to get the road reopened quickly and minimise disruption to traffic.”