Rodbourne Road Roadworks 

Road reopened Monday 08 May 2016

 

Bus lanes now open to help motorists & local businesses as pedestrians follow in the footsteps old GWR workers

26 April 2016

 

Two bus lanes have been opened to all traffic to create an alternative route for motorists affected by Network Rail’s essential work on the Rodbourne Road railway bridges.

 

Rodbourne Road was closed on Monday 18 April for four weeks to allow Network Rail to reconstruct one of the railway bridges and remove a redundant one.

 

 

But after monitoring congestion levels and pressure from local businesses, who have seen passing trade decline dramatically, Swindon Borough Council has decided to open up the Penzance Drive and Wootton Bassett Road bus gates to all traffic.

 

The trial will be closely monitored via cameras, live traffic data and staff on the ground, and if the general impact is too severe it will be halted.

 

Drivers are encouraged to use the approved diversion route, which is:

 

Clockwise from the North side of the Outlet centre:

 

Kemble Drive to Bruce Street Bridges, Great Western Way to Transfer Bridges roundabout, County Road to Magic Roundabout, Fleming Way (via Princes Street, Gordon Road, Islington Street), Holbrook Way then Faringdon Road to Park Lane roundabout.

 

Anti-clockwise from the South side of the Outlet centre:

 

Park Lane to Park Lane roundabout, Faringdon Road via Emlyn Square, Station Road to Transfer Bridges roundabout, Great Western Way to Bruce Street Bridges, Kemble Drive.

 

 

Due to the limited number of days in the year when work can be carried out on the railway line, Network Rail’s choices of dates for the bridge repair work were limited to the Christmas or May Day holiday periods, with May being chosen due to the reduced impact on nearby retailers and other businesses.

 

The way home for GWR Workers

 

Re-wind one hundred years and this was the typical scene after the hooter sounded at the old Swindon Works, when thousands of GWR workers walked home under the Rodbourne Road bridge alongside trams in the pre-car era.

 

CLICK 'Step Back In Time' below.

 

 

With the road now closed for the first time in years, the same stretch has been made a temporarily pedestrian walkway under the bridge allowing those to follow in footsteps of those who worked 'inside'.