New White Hart slip road scheduled to open next week
A new slip road at the White Hart junction is scheduled to open next week after a key inspection was completed this morning (25 March).
Published: Friday, 25th March 2022
The junction has undergone a £30m upgrade as part of the New Eastern Villages (NEV) development, which will see approximately 8,000 new homes built to the east of the A419 along with new schools, employment spaces and community and leisure facilities.
Ahead of the new homes, extra capacity has been created at the junction with slip roads being widened to reduce congestion at peak times, additional lanes being added to the roundabout and a new northbound slip road being built on to the A419.
A new bridge over the railway line was constructed to accommodate the new slip road, and this element of the scheme is now planned to open to traffic late next Thursday (31 March).
Traffic signals have also been added to the roundabout to regulate the flow of traffic. These will be operational after the A420 surfacing works are complete, as part of the Gablecross roundabout scheme. Initially, lane closures will remain on the roundabout until the traffic signals are switched on.
A new noise barrier has been erected along a section of the A419 to benefit local residents and the existing entry point off White Hart junction on to Ermin Street has been closed and replaced with a new section of road and priority junction off Oxford Road. Redundant highway land has been transferred to the parish council and will soon be available for use as an enhancement to the local allotments.
The Department for Transport awarded £29m towards the scheme via the Local Growth Fund, with the remaining £1m of funding obtained from developers’ contributions (S106). The scheme was delivered by Osborne Infrastructure Ltd on behalf of Swindon Borough Council.
Councillor Gary Sumner, Swindon Borough Council’s Cabinet Member for Strategic Infrastructure, Transport and Planning, said: “The improvements to White Hart will make a huge difference to Swindon’s strategic road network and ensure we are future proofing a key junction ahead of major development in the local area.
“The scheme has not been without its challenges. Taking possession of the Great Western Mainline to build the bridge for the new northbound slip road was a complicated task, our contractor had to contend with the pandemic, while we also had to replace the sub-base beneath the roundabout after discovering it was not fit for purpose.
“So after overcoming all these issues, I’m delighted we are on the verge of reopening the new slip road so motorists can finally get the benefit from the new road layout.”
To stay updated with the NEV road upgrades, drivers can subscribe to the dedicated NEV newsletter at www.swindon.gov.uk/newsletter