Parts of the road across Welney Washes could be raised to combat flooding.

Drivers face long delays each winter when the Delph bursts its banks, covering the A1101 with water.

While building a causeway would cost tens of millions, engineers believe they can reduce the amount of days the road is closed by raising parts of it.

Now officials have agreed to fund a feasibility study into the £1.1m scheme, after being urged to start the work by MPs Elizabeth Truss and Steve Barclay.

Ms Truss said: 'This has been a priority for me since 2010 and I am keen that there are no further delays in trying to resolve this problem.

'If the road closures can be reduced by up to 50pc, then this is extremely positive. I fully understand that there are a number of factors to consider in any scheme to raise the causeway but the ongoing uncertainty is not helpful to anyone.

'A housing association in Welney is questioning whether future investment in the village should go ahead, with the closure of the causeway cited as one of the issues.'

Mr Barclay said: 'Residents in Christchurch and elsewhere in north east Cambridgeshire understandably feel huge frustration at the increasing number of days that the A1101 at Welney is closed or diverted.

'As someone who lives locally and uses that route myself on a frequent basis I share this frustration and have again raised my concerns with Norfolk County Council, the lead authority responsible for the Wash road, over the slow rate of progress on a number of occasions.'

The 14-mile long Welney Wash road (A1101) runs across the Ouse Washes. The low-lying area was designed to act as a reservoir when the Fens were drained in the 17th Century, to prevent flooding elsewhere.