Reading resurfaces 17 main roads from 17 August to 28 September, starting in Caversham. The dates, the overnight closures and the £4m behind the work.

Seventeen sections of main road across Reading will be closed and resurfaced over the next five weeks, starting on Monday 17 August in Caversham, Reading Borough Council announced on Monday. The programme runs to 28 September and takes in the High Street, Friar Street, The Forbury, two stretches of Bath Road and overnight closures on the A33 Relief Road and the IDR.

Gosbrook Road goes first, closed between George Street and Mill Road on 17 and 18 August, followed by George Street itself, from the Gosbrook Road junction to Queens Road, on 19 and 20 August. Both are daytime jobs, 8am to 5pm. The town centre High Street is done overnight on Friday 21 August, from 7pm to 1am, and Crown Street, Southampton Street and Eastern Avenue follow in the last full week of August. No closures are scheduled over the bank holiday weekend of 28 to 31 August; the programme resumes on 1 September with four consecutive overnight closures on the IDR and the A33 Relief Road, all northbound and all 7pm to 1am.

The longest single disruption is Friar Street, between West Street and Station Road, which will be closed continuously from 7 to 10 September, even outside the 7pm to 1am working hours. The programme finishes with daytime works on Blagrave Street (21 to 22 September), Bath Road at Brunswick Street (23 to 24 September) and Henley Road in Caversham (25 to 28 September).

Who is doing it and what it costs

This year’s programme is funded by a £2.9m government grant for 2026/27 plus £1.1m of the council’s own money, £4m in total covering carriageway maintenance, pothole reduction and bridge maintenance. The contract has been awarded to O’Hara Bros. Surfacing Ltd, and the council says the 17 roads were chosen after surveys of the structural integrity and skidding resistance of the existing surfaces. Crews will plane off the old carriageway, lay new surfacing, clean the gullies, adjust or replace ironwork and repaint the road markings.

The council’s announcement also sets out what six years of resurfacing spending has changed. Since 2021 it has put £9m, and a further £8m, into major and residential roads. Over that period pothole reports from the public have fallen 39%, and the share of residential roads in good condition has risen from 35% to 79%. Resident satisfaction with the roads stands at 45% against a national average of 35%, measured by the National Highways and Transport residents’ survey in 2025.

Chart: since 2021, residential roads in good condition up from 35% to 79%, pothole reports down 39%, and £4m funding for 2026/27
What Reading's resurfacing spend since 2021 has changed, from the council's own figures. Graphic by Reading Daily.

Cllr Finn McGoldrick, lead councillor for environmental services and community safety, said the programme “will provide smoother journeys for thousands of motorists, cyclists and bus passengers alike”, and thanked residents and businesses in advance for their patience during the closures.

What it means for you

If you live or park on an affected road: you cannot park on the road during working hours, and the council warns that vehicles left in the works area may be issued a Penalty Charge Notice and removed. Access for residents and businesses directly affected will be kept open where it is safe, but the council says it cannot guarantee it. Our parking guide lists the nearest car parks if you need to move your car for a day or two.

If you drive through town: advance signs will go up on each road before its dates, and signed diversions will run during the closures. The overnight A33 and IDR closures in the first week of September are northbound only. Daily updates are published on the council’s road improvements page, and the full 17-road table, with the live roadworks map and the routes that jam when the A33 is shut, is on our Reading roadworks page.

If something goes wrong during the works: the council’s published contacts are the contractor’s manager, Glen Russell, on 07827 466 614, or the council itself at resurfacing@reading.gov.uk or 0118 937 3787.

A reserve list of around 20 further roads, from Honey End Lane to Northumberland Avenue, could be added to the programme if the budget stretches; the council cautions that only a few of those are likely to be delivered this year.