The crater appeared along a pathway on The Boardwalk in Eynesbury, St Neots, in a square section of tarmac laid by Anglian Water to cover a hole dug during an investigation into a leak.

But neighbourhood watch manager James Clark, 61, who lives in the close, said this is just the most recent upset with the water company, after a six-month investigation into a leak in the road has proved fruitless.

According to Mr Clark it started six months ago when several residents approached him with concerns that water seeping up from the ground would enter underneath their homes.

Mr Clark, who lives with wife Margaret, said: "When I told Anglian Water that people were not happy, they said they just can't find where it's leaking from. It is a bit aggravating, but I am more worried that someone going by there on a bike will hurt themselves."
Mr Clark, who previously ran for the Eynesbury seat on St Neots Town Council, said Anglian Water has dug up the road more than five times in the past six months.

The most recent works were carried out about a month ago, and it is in this section where the hole has appeared.
Mr Clark added: "It's got to the stage now with the hot weather, where the tarmac has sunk. It's got to be a foot deep now. There is quite a hole there that someone could fall down."

Anglian Water said it was unaware of the hole, and would be sending someone out to investigate it immediately.
A spokeswoman for Anglian Water said: "We can't find a leak and haven't been able to find where the water is coming from.

"If you see a lot of water, people naturally assume it's coming from a pipe, but it doesn't necessarily mean that it is. It could be coming from a long way back, perhaps from a field, but we have no way of finding that out.
"We've been there, we've examined and there's not much more we can do at this point. There may be a time further down the line where the source of this leak will manifest itself."