BMW Site/Swan Heights (Napier Road)

[Mayfield]

IIRC it is due to last until May 27th and it is upgrading the electricity cable.....

There never seems to be anything proactive to help traffic move at these times...there was a still a long queue to get into Caversham at 3 pm today, if it had ever been better through the day I don't know. On Tues at 10am it was so bad that having got through it ( to Halfords ) we chose to shop in Tilehurst Waitrose and go home via Pangbourne, Whitchurch , Sonning Common etc...a huge and uneconomic detour, but nicer than sitting in traffic.

[annap]

Does anyone know how long the roadworks on the roundabout are likely to last ?

When I looked at roadworks.org this morning it said May 7th. Could have changed since then.

[Mayfield]

Someone on CGG posted a scan of a letter sent out to residents in the area saying it was Vastern Road and Napier Road and would be until May 27th. But I have seen the 7th mentioned too....

Hope you are right annap....

[annap]

Someone on CGG posted a scan of a letter sent out to residents in the area saying it was Vastern Road and Napier Road and would be until May 27th. But I have seen the 7th mentioned too....

Hope you are right annap....

I am only going by what it said on the roadworks website yesterday. I expect there is more information there if anyone wants to look it up.

[maggieaitch]

Thank you.I walked into town yesterday 9.00 am and the traffic over Reading Bridge was tailed back to the bottom of Westfield Rd.

[Mayfield]

Hope this helps :

Road works Vastern/Napier Road

[maggieaitch]

Thanks, looks as if there will be chaos for several more weeks.

[Mayfield]

Given the warning they must have had why is it so difficult to find a way of keeping traffic flowing better? People are stopped right up the Peppard Road and back to Donkin Hill on the Henley Road sometimes...another 6 weeks of this is a nightmare...

Even at 3 pm last Friday I was queued back to Donegal Close....any thought of going to Tesco has been squashed for the foreseeable

[annap]

Post deleted - just realised it was way, way

[Mayfield]

More bad traffic news, from FB : Just seen on roadworks.org that from 1st July to 20th September there are gas works on Reading Bridge with lane closures

[Lizzy33]

Snap showing the other tower being built. It’s very dominanting up close

[Tommy]

Can you imagine what the traffic is going to be like on Napier Road (and elsewhere) once these are built..........hugely worrying times for people of Reading.

[chris_j_wood]

... hugely worrying times for people of Reading ...

You know, one of these days you are going to accidentally say something positive, and cause a massive surge in demand for the RBH cardiology department.

[Tommy]

... hugely worrying times for people of Reading ...

You know, one of these days you are going to accidentally say something positive, and cause a massive surge in demand for the RBH cardiology department.

There will certainly be more strain on the NHS with all these new people moving to Reading......

[dave m]

maybe they will include some doctors?
Anyway, after Brexit we'll have loads of money to spend on the NHS

[Tommy]

Let's hope so. We'll need them. Not sure about the other infrastructure though like patient parking etc.

[Jude]

I know this is gonna upset some people, but i've got these things, two of them, which cover roughly the lower half of my body. They're called legs. At the end of each is a thing called a foot. I learnt, i don't actually remember but i think quite early on in life, that if i get my body into an upright position, with the bottom surface of those feet as the contact point with the ground, i can usually lift one up slightly (by itself, not using hands or anything..), move it forward, then place it down again. Then lift the other one up, move that forward to somewhere beyond the first, then place it down again. Then pick up the first again, move that forward to beyond the other and place it down. Repeat this over and over again and, rather than get monotonous and boring like some repetitive actions can, i actually find my body ends up in a different location to where it started. Its pretty great! And pretty darned energy efficient aswell. Considerable distances can be covered. I find i feel a bit fitter and healthier for it. In my non professional opinion, i have a suspicion it could be one reason why i hardly ever have reason to use the NHS (less than once a year).

(For PC's sake, I do appreciate some people actually cannot do this, do to injury or whatever, like a friend of a friend who was knocked down by a van using a bus lane - thus presumably requiring an ambulance and NHS treatment.. - but my observations suggest most people can..)

[Tommy]

Yep that's all good but you can get injured doing exercise and you'll need the NHS then.

[windrush]

I know this is gonna upset some people, but i've got these things, two of them, which cover roughly the lower half of my body. They're called legs. At the end of each is a thing called a foot. I learnt, i don't actually remember but i think quite early on in life, that if i get my body into an upright position, with the bottom surface of those feet as the contact point with the ground, i can usually lift one up slightly (by itself, not using hands or anything..), move it forward, then place it down again. Then lift the other one up, move that forward to somewhere beyond the first, then place it down again. Then pick up the first again, move that forward to beyond the other and place it down. Repeat this over and over again and, rather than get monotonous and boring like some repetitive actions can, i actually find my body ends up in a different location to where it started. Its pretty great! And pretty darned energy efficient aswell. Considerable distances can be covered. I find i feel a bit fitter and healthier for it. In my non professional opinion, i have a suspicion it could be one reason why i hardly ever have reason to use the NHS (less than once a year).

(For PC's sake, I do appreciate some people actually cannot do this, do to injury or whatever, like a friend of a friend who was knocked down by a van using a bus lane - thus presumably requiring an ambulance and NHS treatment.. - but my observations suggest most people can..)

Not even to have your foot removed from your mouth, that's amazing? Many folk have no option but to drive, unless you work very local to where you live using transport of some sort is the only real choice and public transport isn't always suitable.

Pete.

[KeithW]

<snip>

Many folk have no option but to drive, unless you work very local to where you live using transport of some sort is the only real choice and public transport isn't always suitable.

Pete.

...and so they shouldn't move to Swan Heights.

[Jude]

Yep that's all good but you can get injured doing exercise and you'll need the NHS then.

Not necessarily.

Not even to have your foot removed from your mouth, that's amazing? Many folk have no option but to drive, unless you work very local to where you live using transport of some sort is the only real choice and public transport isn't always suitable.

Pete.

Not sure where the foot's in the mouth there, though just read your post on another thread...

Many people DO have an option, and by not using it are making things worse for those of you who don't. The fact that some people don't have an option cannot be used as an excuse by all.

'Transport of some sort' does not have to mean your living room/greenhouse-on-wheels if there is only one person and no heavy luggage.

This particular development is almost as close as it gets to the station, and near enough to all bus routes. I KNOW public transport isn't ideal - I use it!!!, those of us who do know all the more and also how much more expensive it is - but again it is perfect for many journeys, and - with risk of stereotyping - most of those in this building are going to have enough money to not worry about the extra cost.

Anyway, i am shooting myself in the foot now talking about financial cost, as that is where the private car wins hands down. Currently, in this country, anyway.

[dave m]

I thought the whole point of swan heights is that there is no car parking? therefore no cars

[Pooneil]

I thought the whole point of swan heights is that there is no car parking? therefore no cars

Yes, I thought it was pretty much designed to be inhabited by people who'll be getting the train (and Crossrail, when it finally arrives) to London.

[Mayfield]

Surely there will be zip car or equivalent to serve that and the other blocks springing up in the area ? Not everyone wants to spend their entire lives in doors, or even in Reading.

[Jude]

Or a zip line to the station?

[Jude]

Seriously though, before the rail bridge over Vastern Road was widened a few years ago, there was actually a publicly accessible footpath along the town side of it, possibly little known about/used. I feel a path could (should?) be tagged onto BOTH sides of the bridge now instead of the two pelican (or whatever) crossings there, the sourtherly of which was only put in after the 'footbridge' was removed. I realise the bridge is probably as wide as can be to still allow double decker buses under, but the new paths can be at a slightly higher level than the tracks thus still allowing this.

Just thinking of this right now as the development very probably will block this happening, atleast on that side of the tracks, but could be an integral part of the development though, even if only accessible by residents.

[OneGorman]

Can you imagine what the traffic is going to be like on Napier Road (and elsewhere) once these are built..........hugely worrying times for people of Reading.

Not a great deal worse than it is now, unless you expect those who move in to all have a car, and all be using the road at the same time just to annoy you.

[Mayfield]

Or a zip line to the station?

That would be an interesting start to a commute....

[Mayfield]

Seriously though, before the rail bridge over Vastern Road was widened a few years ago, there was actually a publicly accessible footpath along the town side of it, possibly little known about/used. I feel a path could (should?) be tagged onto BOTH sides of the bridge now instead of the two pelican (or whatever) crossings there, the sourtherly of which was only put in after the 'footbridge' was removed. I realise the bridge is probably as wide as can be to still allow double decker buses under, but the new paths can be at a slightly higher level than the tracks thus still allowing this.

Just thinking of this right now as the development very probably will block this happening, atleast on that side of the tracks, but could be an integral part of the development though, even if only accessible by residents.

Isn't there still a path from adjacent to the bridge to the station, behind Apex plaza ?

[Jude]

Don't think so - the new platform is where it used to be.

[Tommy]

Can you imagine what the traffic is going to be like on Napier Road (and elsewhere) once these are built..........hugely worrying times for people of Reading.

Not a great deal worse than it is now, unless you expect those who move in to all have a car, and all be using the road at the same time just to annoy you.

A little naive me thinks. Some will have cars. Some will order things from the internet. Some will get takeaways delivered. It all adds to the traffic.

[OneGorman]

Not at all. The point is they won’t all be on the road at once. It’ll make a difference but it won’t be a big difference. Far from it. You just pulling your hair out at the thought of the BMW site, Royal Mail site, SSE site, and the ToysRus site all going up soon, oh and phase two of the Station Hill development. Now that will effect the TC traffic... Thank God for internet shopping

[Tommy]

I thought the whole point of swan heights is that there is no car parking? therefore no cars

Fanciful thinking.

Of course some people won't have cars who live but some will. You'll find they'll leave them in a residential area where they can park and go to collect as and when they need it. It happens in London. So those living on the outskirts of town, you may well have a few cars parked up your road on a semi-permanent basis.

And then lets not forget people order a lot of stuff on the internet, so with these 1000's of new homes and flats being built, that will also add to the traffic.

[Tommy]

Not at all. The point is they won’t all be on the road at once. It’ll make a difference but it won’t be a big difference. Far from it. You just pulling your hair out at the thought of the BMW site, Royal Mail site, SSE site, and the ToysRus site all going up soon, oh and phase two of the Station Hill development. Now that will effect the TC traffic... Thank God for internet shopping

But there are so many new developments in Reading it's going to have a huge effect on traffic.

[dave m]

Parking around that entire area is permit only. You'll need to walk a pretty long way to find a local place for local people