It’s been one of the biggest engineering projects the borough has seen for decades, but the opening date has been put back just a few days.
The Shinfield Eastern Relief Road, which includes a new bridge over the M4, is getting closer to the finishing line and, over the past fortnight, there have been road closures and changes to the layout to enable work on the new roundabout and the A327 to progress.
Work on the new roundabout near the Magpie & Parrot pub on Arborfield Road was due to be completed today, but due to some complications this has been delayed until early evening on Thursday, September 1.
And even then, there may still be some off-peak traffic lights put in place to enable workers to complete the new roundabout.
Difficult ground conditions
In a statement, builder Hochtief apologised for the delays and explained what had happened.
A spokesperson said: “Work to build the new roundabout near the Magpie & Parrot on the Arborfield Road has been progressing well, but some of the key activities have unfortunately been slowed by unforeseen and particularly difficult ground conditions.
“To complete the work correctly, and minimise overall disruption to the local community after the road is re-opened, Wokingham Borough Council has granted the project approval to extend the closure by 48 hours.
“This means that the Arborfield Road, between Shinfield and Arborfield, will re-open during the early evening of Thursday 1st September.
“Once opened, there will still be a requirement for occasional temporary off-peak traffic signals.
“To assist traffic flow from Tuesday, August 30, until the Arborfield Road has re-opened, the temporary traffic signals at the Basingstoke Road / High End junction will be operational during off peak hours only – 9am to 4pm.”
A Wokingham Borough Council spokesperson added: “To help keep traffic moving, bearing in mind existing roadworks nearby, for this week (until and including 2 September) the temporary lights on the Basingstoke Road scheme won’t be on during rush hours – only between 9am and 6pm.
“The A33 work remains overnight only – 8pm to 6am.”
