Scottish Water has said a repair to the A96 Inverness to Aberdeen road, near Lhanbryde is taking longer than expected.
The road will not be reopened until Friday to allow tarmac to dry on the road before it begins to take the weight of traffic.
The repair work was due to be completed by Thursday, after Scottish Water sought permission to close the road in order to fix an underground water pipe leak.
The road between Lhanbryde and Mosstodloch, in Moray, has been closed since Tuesday, June 21.
A 10-mile diversion is in place along the B9103 and B9105 via Inchberry.
Scottish Water closed the road on Tuesday with temporary traffic lights initially put up east of Lhanbryde to keep the traffic moving.
However, the damage caused proved worse than initially feared, meaning a road closure was necessary to fix the problem.
Road was ‘sinking’
It is understood the burst water main had eroded soil underneath the road with signs of “sinking” evident on both sides of the carriageway.
The road has now been excavated and backfilled with a base layer of tar.
The final layer of tar is expected to be laid on Thursday morning.
A spokesman for Scottish Water said: “Our team worked through the night to complete a challenging repair and enable the water network to be returned to normal operation in the early hours of this morning.
“We are grateful for road users’ patience and would ask people to continue to allow extra time for journeys and consider alternative routes where possible.”
Conversation