Construction Starts This Summer On Arborfield Cross Relief Road (ACRR)
Wokingham Borough Council has today announced that construction work will begin on Arborfield Cross Relief Road (ACRR) this summer with this major new highway due to open Summer 2020.
The new 2.3km relief road will reduce congestion, boost employment and create opportunities for more sustainable travel, providing traffic relief in Arborfield and Arborfield Cross and the surrounding rural lanes.
New Road
The new road, which will link the A327 Reading Road to the A327 Eversley Road, will also support the development of Arborfield Strategic Development site, consisting of 3500 new homes
This announcement comes after the Department for Transport confirmed a £24million investment in the council project, part of their Major Highways Programme which will help facilitate growth within the borough of Wokingham.
Cllr Pauline Jorgensen, executive member for transport and highways said, “We are delighted that the Government has given us £24million of funding to help reduce congestion in Arborfield and Arborfield Cross by funding the road infrastructure we so badly need.
“This is another major step forward for the council’s £124million major highways project. We are committing substantial investment, secured from the developers, in a wide range of infrastructure including new schools, open spaces and leisure facilities, community facilities and roads, amounting to approximately £1billion.”
The new relief road will also benefit cyclists, pedestrians and horse riders, with the creation of a shared use pathway alongside the route, encouraging commuters to use more sustainable forms of transport.
An observation point close to the site is planned to be established during the construction period where people will be able to see progress on the scheme, including construction and installation of the ‘Green Bridge’ which is one of the main features of the project. The tree lined green bridge will allow pedestrians, cyclists and horses to cross over safely at its mid-section junction with Swallowfield Road and will also provide a safe passage for wildlife.
Construction Plans
The main programme of construction works are being planned to keep disruption to a minimum on this sensitive part of the network with much of the construction taking place off the network. However, drivers may experience delays during specific points in the programme, including the tie-ins with the main network at Eversley Road and Bridge Farm.
Road users are advised to check the council website and Facebook and Twitter traffic and travel pages, as well as roadworks.org, to help plan your journeys in advance.
More Details
To find out more about the Arborfield Cross Relief Road scheme, including a phased construction programme please visit the council website and search Arborfield Relief Road
A separate scheme to improve aspects of the public realm in Arborfield Village is currently being developed, working closely with the Parish Council and other local stakeholders.
Wokingham Borough Council is also working closely with the Arborfield Local History Society on plans to install a memorial stone as a fitting tribute to the brave members of the Arborfield Royal Observer Corps who manned the above-ground observation post from 1936 that was sited nearby, which was also later used as a underground monitoring post from 1961 until its closure in 1968.
