 New road now fully open to traffic
The North Wokingham Distributor Road, built to serve new homes in the area and provide an alternative route to Wokingham town centre, is now fully up and running with footpaths and cycle paths along its length.
We've opened the last remaining section, a 550m stretch between Bell Foundry Lane and Dalley Road at Ashridge Farm, to create a 3.5-mile link between the town's western and eastern outskirts at Reading Road and London Road.
Our contractors Balfour Beatty finished work on this section last year but it had to stay closed for a while because of the high volume of construction traffic on a nearby housing development site. We worked with the developers to open it as soon as we could and would like to thank you for your patience.
This follows the completion of a new section of carriageway to the west of Old Forest Road, with a new 45m bridge over the railway line, and a realigned section of Toutley Road earlier this year.
The North Wokingham Distributor Road has an off-road cycle path to encourage active travel and reduce vehicle journeys, plus new nature parks where more than 2,000 trees have been planted and wildlife habitats created.
It also comprises Queens Road, Diamond Jubilee Way and Oak Avenue. Four sections were led by developers while three were led by us and Balfour Beatty.
 Green spaces accompany new road - with more to follow
Four nature parks have opened to date alongside the distributor road - Old Forest Meadows, Ashridge Meadows, Kentwood Meadows (pictured, courtesy of Thames Basin Heaths Partnership) and Keephatch Meadows.
These will be followed by a 4.5-hectare nature park at Ashridge Farm, which will have two ponds with a total area of about 1,500 sq m, including one specially for wildlife like crested newts, dragonflies, damselflies and grass snakes.
The park, which is yet to be named, will open in a few months once new planting is more established and will connect to the nature parks on either side to form a larger public green space at Wokingham town's northern edge.
It will have footpaths with natural topsoil surfacing as well as hibernation quarters for small mammals, bat boxes and “beetle hotels” made of wood from the site.
There are already tunnels to allow newts to cross under the new road safely and barriers to stop them trying where it isn't safe. Up to 70 trees are being planted on site, about four times the number removed to make way for the road.
These nature parks, totalling more than 35 hectares, offer improved access to adjoining green spaces including the Keephatch Park nature reserve off Diamond Jubilee Way, another popular site with walkers, and the allotments opposite.
 A sustainable solution to our planet's problems
We recognise that building new roads, while sometimes necessary, isn't a long-term way of tackling congestion - not to mention the wider environmental problems which extra vehicle traffic can bring.
The only sustainable way forward for everyone is to reduce dependence on private vehicles. This will reduce air pollution and carbon emissions significantly, helping to address the climate emergency while improving people’s health.
That’s why we’re committed to making active and sustainable travel easier by providing new green infrastructure - alongside our My Journey Wokingham team's work to equip people with the skills they need to use it.
Why not find out more about the upcoming Love to Ride Cycle September initiative? It's been hugely successful in our borough so far - and it's open to everybody, regardless or age, ability or experience.
 Help us to help you walk and cycle more
We’d like to hear your thoughts on our proposal to make walking and cycling around Wokingham borough safer and more accessible.
Until 19 August, we’re seeking people’s views on our draft Local Cycling and Walking Infrastructure Plan (LCWIP), which suggests improvements around the borough to help people walk, wheel, scoot or cycle and will help secure funding.
The draft will be finished in the autumn but will always be open to updates and new ideas. It will outline the most beneficial active travel routes and propose specific measures in places where the community wants them.
Examples in North Wokingham include improvements to the junction of London Road and Oak Avenue and provision of a two-way cycle track between Longdon Road and the North Wokingham Distributor Road.
With the increasing cost of fuel, walking and cycling are likely to become more attractive for short journeys. We want to enable this by making it safe, comfortable, affordable and inclusive for everybody.
 Stepping up to save our buses
We're working with local bus operators to secure a future for the borough's services, which were heavily hit by the covid-19 pandemic and are still struggling with reduced passenger numbers as well as higher running costs.
We're reviewing several routes and have extended Thames Valley Buses' contracts for the 121, 122/3, 124, 125A/B, 127 and 128/9 routes serving Wokingham town until April 2023 while they are reviewed and retendered.
No decisions have been made but it's vital that we keep our buses running, both for your health and that of the environment as they reduce car usage - in turn reducing harmful emissions and helping you to get active more often.
However, with no clear funding from the Government on the horizon, we need your help to do this. Please consider using the bus wherever you can as they are safe, convenient and affordable on top of the clear benefits for our planet.
Keep an eye on our news site and sign up for our newsletters, including our Traffic and Travel edition, for more updates.
 Care home scheme moving forward
Proposals to build a state-of-the-art specialist dementia care home at Toutley East, in North Wokingham, have been approved by our planning committee.
The committee has approved an outline application for a 68-bed facility along with up to 130 new homes, extensive landscaping and a potential new noise buffer to reduce the impact from the nearby A329(M).
The plans also include pedestrian and cycle links to the new St Cecilia's primary school in Matthewsgreen, which is ready to open when the local community needs it, and the shops at the district centre to the south on Queens Road.
The scheme will offer residents the high-quality care they will increasingly need while remaining local, close to family and friends. It will include at least 45 new affordable, energy efficient homes, which many families desperately need.
The decision was deferred from May so planning committee members could visit the site and seek assurance on concerns about access and closeness to the A329(M), both of which will be addressed when detailed plans are drawn up.
This will be done once our decision-making executive approves a strategic business case for the scheme. There will be further consultation before detailed designs are put forward for approval by the committee.
 New play area will entertain all ages
We're still working to install a new play area off Queens Road, in the Matthewsgreen area, as soon as possible and a design has now been drawn up.
Once it's been agreed and finished, it'll have equipment suitable for children and teenagers of all ages - including a multi-use games area which can be used for several different sports.
This will benefit the community for many years so it's really important that we get it right for everyone and we want it to be worth the wait. We're looking forward to having it ready and welcoming its first visitors.
Until then, why not visit the high-tech new play area we installed at Cantley Park, near North Wokingham, earlier this year?
The Cantley Park Café has extended its hours for the summer and it's dog-friendly too - though please note that our four-legged friends aren't allowed in the play area!
 Fighting for fairer housing numbers
We've stepped up our campaign to change how housing is planned nationally - and reduce the number of new homes which the Government is forcing us to take. The council's leader Clive Jones is meeting local MPs to ensure your voice is heard.
He is also calling on Greg Clark MP, who is responsible for the planning system as housing minister, to honour his predecessor Michael Gove's recent promise to visit the borough and discuss the matter personally.
Wokingham MP Sir John Redwood has raised the matter in Parliament since meeting Cllr Jones - who has also met MPs James Sunderland and Theresa May, whose Bracknell and Maidenhead constituencies include parts of this borough.
Under the current formula, set by the Government, we've got to plan for 781 new homes per year. Cllr Jones says this is unreasonably high, not based on true need and puts undue pressure on both our infrastructure and the environment. This is not to oppose all new housing, but it has to genuinely work for the community's benefit.
Newly released 2021 Census figures show the borough’s population has risen by about 15 per cent since 2011 – the largest increase in Berkshire and among the country’s biggest increases against a national average of 6.6 per cent.
 Planting the borough's tree stories
While you’re out and about this summer, why not take a snap of your favourite tree within the borough for our new tree stories project?
Trees are hugely important, giving us oxygen, storing carbon, habitats for wildlife and providing us with tools and shelter.
We want to hear why particular trees are important to you. Maybe it's your favourite place to sit with a book? Or played as a child? Or it's a particularly old or rare species?
Please take a picture, upload it to our Engage Wokingham Borough platform and share why you've chosen that tree. You may even see your photo and/or story featured on our social media pages and in our tree strategy!
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