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We're sending this special edition on top of our regular weekly round-up of transport and active travel news from across the borough. Your next newsletter will arrive on Thursday evening (22 January) as usual.
Above: artist's impression of the new route on Woodlands Avenue, looking west towards Reading
All you need to know about new active travel route
We're starting work on a new walking and cycling route from Woodley town centre to Palmer Park, in Reading, next Monday (26 January).
Construction will take place in phases and is expected to take much of the year, with the Woodlands Avenue sections due for completion in the summer.
This will require road closures with diversions, and our partners at VolkerHighways will try to work quickly but may be delayed by factors like the weather.
Further works on Church Road, Palmerstone Road and Culver Lane will begin this summer and finish in the winter, with detailed timeframes to be confirmed.
The scheme has been extensively consulted upon and updated based on feedback. It's part of our plan to improve walking and cycling links.
It's being funded by the Government via Active Travel England.
You can find this information on our project webpages, which we'll update regularly, and we'll share updates through this newsletter. Please forward this to anyone it might help - and if you've been forwarded this by someone else, you can subscribe to this newsletter!
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What the finished scheme will look like
Woodlands Avenue (east): Woodley precinct to Howth Drive
We'll be installing a two-way segregated cycle track along the northern side of Woodlands Avenue, with the road remaining two-way and 5.5 metres wide.
The verges and footway on the south side will be largely kept, and a raised table foot crossing will be provided near the path to Woodwaye.
There’ll be continuous footway crossings at each side road to enforce the existing pedestrian priority and encourage drivers to give way.
The Howth Drive mini-roundabout will become a T-junction with a cycle track crossing the northern arm. The lay-by opposite will be reduced to help with turning.
At the opposite end of this section, near the shops, the zebra crossing at the junction of Woodlands Avenue and Crockhamwell Road will be refurbished.
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Woodlands Avenue (west): Howth Drive to Church Road
We're keeping the shared use path along this section of Woodlands Avenue, based on your feedback that it’s fine as it is.
We're also keeping the laybys and we’re no longer proposing to remove parking in this section, again in response to your comments.
A new toucan crossing will replace the pelican crossing to the west of Fairwater Drive. The side crossing on Fairwater Drive will be upgraded to a zebra crossing.
Two zebra crossings will be installed at the junction with Church Road – one on Woodlands Avenue, and one on Church Road to the north of the junction.
Another two zebra crossings could be built on this section of Woodlands Avenue in future, if funding becomes available, but aren’t currently proposed.
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Church Road, Palmerstone Road and Culver Lane
The route heads south along the eastern side of Church Road, with two-way segregated cycleway and shared use path at pinch points.
It heads west at Palmerstone Road, where we aren't making changes. There’ll be a new zebra crossing on Church Road, north of the Palmerstone Road junction.
A segregated two-way cycle track will run along the southern side of Culver Lane until the railway and A329(M) overbridge.
Side road junctions to the south will enforce cyclist and pedestrian priority, with a new new raised foot crossing across Culver Lane, just west of Milton Road.
Parking bays west of Culver Lane will remain, and there’ll be some shared use path under the bridge. Due to the narrow road, westbound traffic will give way here.
Near Palmer Park, there’ll be a pedestrian priority side road crossing on Wykeham Road and a new zebra crossing across Palmer Park Avenue to the west.
Subject to a Traffic Regulation Order, double yellow lines will be painted to restrict parking on both sides of Culver Lane.
New speed limits agreed to keep everyone safe
We're going to reduce the speed limit to 20mph on three sections of this route, which follows best practice as outlined by the Department for Transport.
The new 20mph limit will apply on Woodlands Avenue from the zebra crossing near the shops until just past Fairwater Drive.
It will also apply to all of Palmerstone Road and on Culver Lane from the Reading borough boundary to just beyond Palmerstone Road.
Some 55 per cent of you supported this when we consulted on the principle of reducing the speed limit in late 2022.
This was followed by a statutory consultation on a Traffic Regulation Order last year.
This scheme supports several of our "bigger picture" goals, including improved access to healthier lifestyles for everyone, tackling the climate emergency and working towards a fair, safe, green and connected borough.
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Dates for construction on Woodlands Avenue
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Section 1 - from 26 January: Lytham Road to Roslyn Road - closure with diversion via Howth Drive, Beechwood Avenue and Lytham Road
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Section 2 - from 11 March: Roslyn Road to Woodwaye - closure with diversion via Howth Drive, Beechwood Avenue and Lytham Road
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Section 3A - from 21 April: Woodwaye to Howth Drive - closure with diversion via Howth Drive, Beechwood Avenue and Lytham Road
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Section 3B - from 23 May: Howth Drive to Fairwater Drive - closure with diversion via Fairwater Drive, Nightingale Road and Crockhamwell Road (eastbound) or via Lytham Road and Beechwood Avenue (westbound)
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Section 4 - from 16 June: Crockhamwell Road to Lytham Road - closure with diversion via Fairwater Drive, Nightingale Road and Crockhamwell Road. (Lytham Road access via Crockhamwell Road, Loddon Bridge Road and Headley Road)
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Section 5 - from 4 July: Town Street to Lytham Road - closure with diversion via Crockhamwell Road, Loddon Bridge Road, Headley Road and Lytham Road
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Section 6 - from 15 July: Fairwater Drive including Howth Drive to Bulmershe School entrance - closure with diversion via Church Road, Pitts Lane, Reading Road and Howth Drive (for access to Woodlands Avenue: diversion via Crockhamwell Road and Nightingale Road)
These dates are subject to change but we'll do all we can to keep to them. More detailed timings for Church Road, Palmerstone Road and Culver Lane will be confirmed well before any works start.
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