 Image: Wokingham Aerial Photography (click to visit on Facebook)
Brief closures for annual Remembrance ceremonies
As we prepare to honour those who risked or lost their lives for the nation, here's our round-up of Remembrance road closures for next Sunday (8 November).
There'll be closures in Wokingham town centre between 2pm and 4.30pm for the town council's Remembrance Day parade, which runs via Market Place, Broad Street, Rose Street, Wiltshire Road, Peach Street and back to Market Place.
Wargrave's parade, organised by the Royal British Legion, will see closures between 9.30am and 11.30am in Church Street, High Street and Station Road.
The parade at Arborfield Cross, organised by Arborfield & Newland Parish Council, involves a closure on Eversley Road between 10am and midday.
Sonning's parade, also organised by the Royal British Legion, will see closures on Pearson Road and High Street between 10am and midday.
On Armistice Day, Wednesday 11 November, Wokingham Town Council will pay respects to the fallen with a brief closure on Peach Street at 11am.
 Image: Wokingham Lions Club (see event link below)
Fireworks parade to follow town centre streets
The Wokingham Fireworks on Saturday 7 November include a flaming torchlight procession with rolling closures from Market Place to Cantley Park, starting at 6.15pm. Please note that parking at Cantley is very limited.
If you're coming to Wokingham from further afield, the town is well served by train services and the Lion 4 bus service from both Bracknell and Reading, as well as the Leopard 3 to Reading via Arborfield Green and Shinfield.
With Christmas on the horizon, there'll also be closures for Wokingham Winter Carnival, Twyford Christmas Fayre, Reading Toy Run and Woodley Christmas Extravaganza. We'll look at these in more detail nearer the time.
 Tree-mendous effort to clear roads as storm hits
Our partners at VolkerHighways were busy during the weekend's high winds, attending more than 30 emergency out-of-hours calls.
Most were about fallen trees and other storm damage, with complete blockages of everything from major routes to residential streets and rural lanes.
These included Hatch Farm Way in Winnersh and the A329(M) westbound slip road near Coppid Beech roundabout in Wokingham.
The crews also safely brought down and cut up a tree which had partly come down over the A3290 eastbound near Earley and posed a serious hazard.
Some incidents required brief road closures and support from tree management specialists to ensure works could be done safely.
Volker also cleared partial blockages of footways and streets by branches, all while attending routine call-outs like broken temporary traffic lights.
 Preparing for all kinds of adverse weather
With winter approaching, we're working with Volker to prepare for snow and ice, increased flood risks and the annual increase in pothole formation.
Our drainage clearance programme on the borough's watercourses is well under way and Volker are mobilising their gritting crews and fleet.
Potholes increase in winter because cold and wet conditions cause more damage. We'll continue actively inspecting the network to stay on top of this.
We'll take a closer look at different aspects of our winter readiness over the coming weeks. You can report any issues on the roads or footways to us and we'll inspect them before deciding the most appropriate action.
 Underpass diversion improved for bridge closure
Our footbridge between Earley and Woodley, which crosses the railway and A3290 at Earley station, is now closed for refurbishment until next April.
We've carried out a series of improvements to the Pond Head Lane underpass, one of two alternative routes (see diagram) along with Mays Lane and Church Road.
We've fixed broken lights, improved the surfacing and trimmed overgrown trees on either side of the underpass to increase visibility, especially at night.
We're going to install mirrors on both sides so people can see around the corners, and we've informed local police about the temporary diversion.
The existing footbridge is being maintained as a like-for-like replacement but we're talking with landowners and other bodies about long-term options for access.
Separately from this project, we've removed some loose materials from the underpass walls to support local efforts to paint a community artwork.
Planning a trip on foot, by bike or by bus across the borough? Our My Journey Wokingham team's sustainable journey planner can help you find a health, eco-friendly way to get where you need to be.
 Free bike checks coming up across borough
As part of our efforts to keep everyone safe while travelling actively over the winter, we're offering a series of Dr Bike clinics next month.
You can get your bike checked free of charge, and problems will be fixed on the spot if possible. If new parts are needed or it's more complex, you'll still get free advice on what you can do next.
You need to book slots in advance at all sessions:
- Woodford Park, Woodley (2.30pm to 3.30pm, Thu 5 Nov)
- Wokingham station (3.30pm to 6.30pm, Tue 10 Nov)
- Woodford Park, Woodley (2.30pm to 3.30pm, Thu 12 Nov)
- Cantley Park, Wokingham (12.30pm to 2.30pm, Sat 14 Nov)
- Stables Cafe, Arborfield Green (10am to 12pm, Sat 14 Nov)
- Woodford Park, Woodley (2.30pm to 3.30pm, Thu 19 Nov)
- Woodford Park, Woodley (2.30pm to 3.30pm, Thu 26 Nov)
Our My Journey Wokingham team will be at the Wokingham station event, handing out information and giving safe cycling advice.
Check My Journey's calendar for events beyond November and their ongoing cycle training for all ages and experience levels.
Get advice on being seen in winter, as well as planning your route and riding safely.
Our electric vehicle (EV) expert has been shortlisted for an award. Sofia's achievements include producing our EV Charging Strategy, which guides how we roll out charging infrastructure across the borough in the long term - and we'll have more news to share about that soon.
 Upcoming roadworks
We think these works will be the most disruptive, but you can see a list of all upcoming works in your area or browse our interactive map.
Hurst
Temporary lights - Waltham Road
Monday 2 to Friday 6 November (9.30am to 4pm)
There'll be two-way lights between Hinton Road and Hungerford Lane while we carry out carriageway improvement works.
Wokingham
Temporary lights - Easthampstead Road
Monday 2 to Friday 27 November
There'll be multi-way lights between Starmead Drive and Waterloo Road while SSEN carry out a new service connection.
Temporary lights - Waterloo Road
Monday 2 to Friday 27 November
There'll be multi-way lights at the junction with Easthampstead Road while SSEN carry out a new service connection.
Keeping up to date
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