More than £29 million could be invested in improving Swindon’s roads over the next four years under a new transport programme set to be considered by councillors next week.
Swindon Borough Council’s updated Local Transport Plan (LTP) outlines almost £30m of highways investment, with more than 60 roads due to be improved in the first two years alone.
The plan will be discussed at the Cabinet meeting on Wednesday (4 March) and, if approved, would see several high-profile routes resurfaced. These include Blagrove Roundabout, Bath Road, Commercial Road and Station Road.
Other roads earmarked for resurfacing in 2026/27 include Marlowe Avenue, Penhill Drive, Eastcott Road and Colebrook Road. In 2027/28, further schemes are planned for Devizes Road, Highworth Road and Corporation Street.
Funding boost
The updated programme has been made possible by additional funding from central government, with the Council set to receive a 45 per cent increase in road repair funding between now and 2029/30.
The authority estimates there is currently a £50m backlog of road repairs and maintenance across the borough, which the increased funding will help address.
The first year of the plan (2026/27) includes a total highways budget of £5,972,000. This will be allocated across:
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Major and minor resurfacing works – £2.9m
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Footway maintenance – £530,000
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Road condition surveys – £50,000
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Street lighting maintenance – £726,000
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Refreshing road markings – £106,000
In addition to resurfacing, the LTP includes funding for road patching repairs, footway improvements, street lighting maintenance and traffic light upgrades.
Councillor Chris Watts, Cabinet Member for Environment and Transport, said:
“We’ve made a positive start to our road repairs programme having resurfaced more than 20 locations last year, but we know more needs to be done.
“It’s been a challenging winter and that’s had a big impact on our network and not helped our efforts to get to grips with our estimated £50m road repairs backlog.
“There are some key routes on this new plan that will be prioritised by our teams including at Blagrove Roundabout and Commercial Road.
“The team is working hard to allocate the right resources to make sure we can make the most out of the additional funding from the Government.”
The full Local Transport Plan is available on the Council’s website ahead of Wednesday’s decision.
