Reading Roadworks This Week: Northumberland Ave and M4 J10

The inbound lane of Northumberland Avenue at Buckland Road Circle in Whitley is still closed for Thames Water. Reading Buses lists the closure from 11 September to 31 October. The emerald 5 and buzz 9 divert, and the inbound Buckland Road Circle stop is out of use. A second job follows on the same road: a council order dated 1 October closes part of Northumberland Avenue from 19 to 30 October for a new water connection.

On the motorway, the M4 westbound entry slip at junction 10, for traffic coming off the A329(M) southbound, closes 9pm to 6am on the nights of Monday 5, Tuesday 6 and Wednesday 7 October.

This is our Reading roadworks and travel update. It lists what is closed now, what closes in the next fortnight, the motorway and rail picture, and what is left of the council’s resurfacing programme. Every source was re-checked on Saturday 3 October.

Closed in Reading now

Northumberland Avenue, inbound lane towards Reading, at Buckland Road Circle and the Long Barn Lane junction. Reading Buses lists the lane closure from 11 September to 31 October for Thames Water works (Reading Buses service updates). Buses divert:

• emerald 5 towards Reading goes via Long Barn Lane and Canterbury Road, rejoining at Hexham Road. Towards the Northumberland Avenue terminus it runs as normal.
• buzz 9 towards Green Park goes via Buckland Road, Basingstoke Road and Long Barn Lane, then onto Northumberland Avenue.
• buzz 9 towards Reading goes via Long Barn Lane, Basingstoke Road and Buckland Road, then Cressingham Road.

For the inbound Buckland Road Circle stop, use Whitley Community Centre or Corbridge Road.

Western Elms Avenue, Reading West, to 4 October. The carriageway is closed outside numbers 44 to 55 for essential sewer rehabilitation. Parking bay restrictions are suspended, and a no stopping, waiting or loading restriction covers the frontage of 40 to 59. A signed diversion is in place (Reading Borough Council, multiple temporary closures, 10 September).

Wykeham Road, Newtown, order runs to Saturday 3 October. The road is closed between Grange Avenue and Palmer Park Avenue for carriageway re-alignment, under the same 10 September notice. That is the last day the order gives; nobody has published a reopening, so check the live map before relying on it.

Norman Road, Emmer Green: the order has no end date. It closes the road from outside and opposite the boundary of number 16 to the closed end, for the removal and replacement of an electricity transformer. It came into force on 11 September and names no finish date, only the standard ceiling of eighteen months or completion, whichever comes first (temporary road restrictions, 3 September). Nobody has published a reopening, so we still cannot tell you whether the road is shut.

A4074 at Chazey Heath, Mapledurham: 20mph to 16 October. Oxfordshire County Council has cut the limit from 50mph, through 30mph, to 20mph on this stretch of the Caversham to Wallingford road, from 29 September to the end of 16 October. The reason given is the “continuation of the emergency gas escape turned into replacement of main” (Oxfordshire County Council notice, 1 October). Chazey Heath is just over the borough boundary, about two miles north west of Caversham.

These have dropped off since the 1 October edition:

• the Water Road stop on Tilehurst Road, Wellington Avenue stop on Shinfield Road and Churchward Walk stop on Carters Rise, none of which Reading Buses now lists
• the two booked nights of Bath Road resurfacing between Hogarth Avenue and New Lane Hill, and the one booked night on the IDR northbound at the A33, which were due to finish by 3 October (see the resurfacing section: the council has not yet marked them complete)

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Bus stops out of use

• Buckland Road Circle, inbound, for the Northumberland Avenue lane closure above, listed to 31 October.
• Cunning Man, Burghfield, both directions, to 18 October, for Thames Water. lime 2 and 2a. Use Burghfield Golf Course. Burghfield is about five miles south west of Reading, in West Berkshire.
• Padworth Road, between Burghfield and Tadley AWE, closed to 23 October. lime 2 and 2a divert via Reading Road, Victoria Road, Stephens Road, West End Road and Welshmans Road, with delays of up to ten minutes. The Island Farm Road, Camp Road, The Round Oak, Mays Lane and Chapel Lane stops are out of use.

The aqua 28 and 28a have extra double-deck capacity on peak journeys for Henley College students from 28 September: mornings Monday to Thursday, afternoons Monday to Friday, and the Friday morning journey upgraded to a double-decker.

Coming in the next fortnight

• Brooksby Road stop, inbound on Overdown Road, Tilehurst, out of use 5 to 7 October for Openreach. sky blue 16. Use Tring Road or Oak Tree Copse.
• Cressingham Road Church stops on Cressingham Road, Whitley, out of use 5 to 16 October for SSE. buzz 9, 9a and 9b. Use Barnsdale Road, or the Cressingham Road Church stops on Shinfield Road.
• No right turn from Gillette Way into Manor Farm Road, 5 to 30 October, under traffic management. The greenwave 50a cannot reach Gillette Way. Outbound it runs via the A33, Kennet Island, Manor Farm Road, Basingstoke Road and Rose Kiln Lane back to the A33. Towards Reading it runs via Basingstoke Road and Rose Kiln Lane. Use the Morrison and Whitley Park School stops instead.
• London Street, the parking bay outside numbers 73 to 77, suspended 6 to 9 October with no stopping, waiting or loading, to disconnect a water supply. It applies only when signs are up on site (Reading Borough Council, multiple notices, 1 October).
• Pangbourne Cemetery stops, both directions, Friday 9 October only, for utility works. azure 43. Use Stoke View. Pangbourne is about six miles north west of Reading, in West Berkshire.
• Wokingham Road, the parking bays outside numbers 3 to 15, suspended 12 to 14 October with no stopping, waiting or loading, for footway works (Reading Borough Council notice, 1 October).
• Bath Road, eastbound bus lane between numbers 48 and 44, suspended for one day on 18 October so utilities under the carriageway can be reached. The road itself stays open.
• Barkham Road, Wokingham, closed between The Bull and Bearwood Road until 13 November for Thames Water. leopard 3 takes an amended route via Finchampstead and Barkham, serving Finchampstead Road instead. A weekday shuttle runs to Wokingham from the dropped Bearwood Road stops, 6.30am to 6.30pm. Wokingham is about six and a half miles east of Reading.

Two smaller items for Arborfield, in Wokingham borough about six miles south east of Reading. Nine Mile Ride Extension, between Sheerlands Road and Harvest Path, closes 10.30am to 12.30pm on Sunday 4 October for the Siren Craft 10k run, and the leopard 3 diverts. The Rowcroft Road outbound stop on Sheerlands Road is out of use 6 to 8 October for Thames Water; use Crusader Close or Arborfield Green District Centre.

Just beyond the fortnight: Northumberland Avenue again, and Purley

• Northumberland Avenue, 19 to 30 October, closed from the boundary between numbers 7 and 9 to the vehicle entrance of number 2a, for new water connection works. No stopping, waiting or loading applies on both sides of Northumberland Avenue and of Canterbury Road, from outside and opposite number 12 to the junction. A signed diversion will be in place (Reading Borough Council, multiple notices, 1 October). This is a separate order from the Thames Water lane closure at Buckland Road Circle.
• New Hill Road, Purley on Thames, 19 October to 6 November, closed between the A329 Reading Road and outside number 5 for SGN gas main replacement. The diversion is via the A329 Reading Road, Purley Lane and Purley Village (West Berkshire Council notice, 1 October). Purley is about four miles west of the town centre.

New council orders, and two consultations

Reading Borough Council published a new batch of traffic notices in the Reading Chronicle on 1 October, its first since the 10 September batch. As well as the Northumberland Avenue and London Street orders above, it advertises three permanent changes, each open for representations until 22 October (notice):

• A 20mph limit on the Amersham Road estate, covering Amersham Road, Clonmel Close, Charles Evans Way, Ian Mikardo Way, Rhine Close, Nire Road, Managua Close and Honey Meadow Close. Objections go to highway.objections@reading.gov.uk.
• Speed humps on the same estate: three on Charles Evans Way and two on Ian Mikardo Way, each a nominal 75mm high.
• Sidmouth Street, where the cycle lane on the east side between South Street and London Road becomes a southbound only cycle lane. Representations go to transport@reading.gov.uk.

The Amersham Road scheme is one of the six the Traffic Management Sub-Committee sent out to consultation on 10 September.

Two proposals just outside the borough sit on roads Reading drivers use:

• A no right turn at Theale. West Berkshire Council proposes to ban all motor vehicles and pedal cycles from turning right out of Englefield Road, Theale, into Theale C of E Primary School, with an exemption for emergency vehicles. Theale is about four miles west of Reading. Objections must be in by Friday 9 October, quoting reference TM/4798/003 (notice dated 17 September).
• A longer 30mph limit at Shiplake. Oxfordshire County Council proposes to extend the 30mph limit on the A4155 Reading Road at Shiplake northwards by 44 metres. Shiplake is about four miles north east of Reading, on the road to Henley. Objections close at the end of 23 October, quoting reference CM/12.6.341/P0140 (notice dated 25 September).

The motorway this week

National Highways publishes a rolling seven-day closure report. The current spreadsheet runs from Friday 2 to Thursday 8 October (road closure report). From Saturday 3 October onwards it lists:

• Monday 5, Tuesday 6 and Wednesday 7 October, 9pm to 6am: the M4 westbound entry slip at junction 10 closes, for traffic coming off the A329(M) southbound. The reason given is surveys. Junction 10 is the Winnersh and Wokingham junction.
• Thursday 8 October, 9pm to 6am: Reading Services westbound closes, under a scheme of slip road and lane closures between junctions 11 and 12 for drainage works.

There are no carriageway or slip road closures at junctions 11 or 12 themselves in this week’s report.

On the A34, the Oxford road:

• northbound, Marcham to Abingdon: closed 9pm to 6am every night to Thursday 8 October, for barrier work.
• southbound, Milton to Chilton: closed every night to Thursday 8 October, for improvement works, except Wednesday 7 October. The night of Saturday 3 October runs 8pm to 8am; the rest run 9pm to 6am.
• southbound, Hinksey to Marcham: closed 9pm to 6am on Wednesday 7 October, for developer works.
• northbound, Whitchurch exit slip on Monday 5 October, Chieveley exit and Chieveley Services entry slips on Wednesday 7 October, and the Graces Lane entry slip on Thursday 8 October, all 9pm to 6am for maintenance.

Trains: Sunday 4 October is the one to plan around

Sunday 4 October brings engineering work either side of Reading. All of these are on National Rail’s planned works pages.

West towards Didcot, work closes some lines between Reading and Didcot Parkway. From the 07:38 London Paddington to Didcot Parkway, trains do not call at Pangbourne, hourly up to and including the 17:38 from Paddington. Replacement buses run between Tilehurst and Pangbourne for all trains. After 19:00, trains call at Pangbourne as normal (National Rail, Pangbourne, 4 October).

Early the same morning, work between Reading and Theale changes the Newbury line (National Rail, Theale, 4 October):

• The 08:06 Reading to Newbury does not run. A replacement bus leaves Reading earlier, at 07:51, calling at all stations except Newbury Racecourse.
• The 08:33 Reading to Bedwyn starts from Newbury at 09:02.
• The 08:04 Paddington to Penzance leaves earlier, at 07:53, and diverts via Swindon without calling at Newbury or Pewsey. The 08:44 calls at both instead.

East towards London, the 00:34 London Paddington to Reading in the early hours of 4 October does not call at Burnham or Taplow; replacement buses run between Slough and those stations (National Rail, Taplow, 3 and 4 October).

Later in the month:

• Tuesday 6 to Thursday 8 October: engineering work between Slough and Reading. The 00:18 Henley-on-Thames to Reading terminates at Twyford, with a rail connection from Twyford to Reading (National Rail, 6 October).
• Saturday 10 to Friday 16 October: track renewal through Pewsey. There is no direct train from Paddington to Paignton or to Frome. Trains keep running between Reading and Newbury or Bedwyn (GWR planned engineering work).
• Weekend of 10 and 11 October, and Sunday 18 October: replacement road transport between North Camp and Gatwick Airport, and between North Camp and Redhill. GWR trains still run between Reading and Ash (GWR, North Downs line).
• Monday 12 to Friday 16 October: all lines between Newbury and Bedwyn close overnight. The 22:30 Paddington to Bedwyn starts from Reading, with road transport from Newbury to Bedwyn, and the 05:31 Bedwyn to Paddington terminates at Reading (National Rail, Newbury and Bedwyn).
• Sundays 18 and 25 October: only two of the four tracks between London Paddington and Reading are available, and trains run to an amended timetable.

The resurfacing programme: four jobs still marked not complete

The council’s published list is awarded to contractor O’Hara Bros. Surfacing Ltd. The page was last updated on 28 September, and when we checked it on 3 October it had not changed (residential road improvements).

Every booked date on the list has now passed, but the council has not marked any of the four as done. We cannot confirm from the council’s page whether these jobs ran as booked. It has done this before: in September it left jobs marked “Not complete” for weeks after their dates, then marked them complete in one update. No new dates have been added.

There is also a reserve list of roads that may be brought in “if there is sufficient budget remaining”, which the council says helps ensure the available funding “can be fully utilised”. So a street not named above is not necessarily safe from works this autumn. The reserve roads are:

• Honey End Lane, Deacon Way and Northumberland Avenue
• Basingstoke Road, two sections
• Whiteknights Road, Erleigh Road (two sections) and Shinfield Road (two sections)
• Portman Road, Vastern Road, Caversham Road and Richfield Avenue
• Peppard Road and Kings Road
• Bath Road
• Friar Street, Gun Street and Valpy Street

That list matters more than it looks. The council’s own road safety report for King’s Road notes that the eastbound bus lane there still has sections of red surface dressing. Those would have to be resurfaced before a planned safety change can be marked out, and the area “is on the list of reserve sites for resurfacing”.

The contract manager for the programme is Glen Russell on 07827 466 614. The council’s resurfacing inbox is resurfacing@reading.gov.uk.

Still no minutes from the 10 September traffic committee

Reading’s Traffic Management Sub-Committee met on Thursday 10 September and was asked to send six schemes out to statutory consultation. More than three weeks later the council has still published no minutes and no decision record for that meeting. The agenda frontsheet and the 18MB reports pack are online, and the only minutes on the page are those of the previous meeting (Traffic Management Sub-Committee, 10 September 2026). The formal advertisement of the Amersham Road 20mph order on 1 October suggests at least that scheme was approved.

The six include new 20mph zones on residential streets either side of Oxford Road, a parallel crossing on Portman Road, the Amersham Road estate 20mph zone, and a change to the outbound bus lane on King’s Road after a run of collisions at three left turns. None of them dig up a road this month. All of them change one later. We have written the detail up separately: what the council wants to do to six Reading roads, and the 97-request queue behind them.

Checking what is happening on the day

The council does not publish a written list of live roadworks. Its current roadworks page is an embedded map only, drawing real-time data from Causeway one.network, which covers utility works as well as council schemes. That is where to look for a specific street on a specific day.

For anything affecting buses, Reading Buses service updates is faster and more specific. It names the road, the dates and which routes divert, which the map does not. Much of this page comes from it.

New council closures appear first as statutory notices in the Reading Chronicle, which is why the 1 October orders above are on this page before anything on the council’s own website mentions them.

The routes that decide your journey

Whatever is being dug up this month, Reading traffic funnels through the same handful of places.

The IDR. The Inner Distribution Road is the town centre ring road, and almost every central diversion ends up on it. Its northbound stretch at the A33 was booked for one night of resurfacing on 2 to 3 October.

The A33 Relief Road. The main southern approach, linking the M4 at junction 11 to the town centre past Green Park and the stadium. It carries the retail parks and the Mereoak park and ride buses, and it takes the strain whenever the M4 shuts. The greenwave 50a diversion for the Gillette Way no right turn runs along it from 5 October.

The A4 Bath Road and Berkeley Avenue. The western approach and the standard M4 diversion route. Bath Road appears three times this autumn: the Brunswick Street end was booked for daylight work from 23 to 25 September, the Hogarth Avenue end for two nights to 2 October, and the eastbound bus lane at numbers 44 to 48 is suspended for a day on 18 October.

The bridges. Caversham Bridge and Reading Bridge are the only two road crossings of the Thames in the town. Anything closing one puts everything on the other.

Leaving the car behind

Reading’s park and ride is cheap and usually the right answer during town centre works. A return is £4 at Mereoak, Winnersh Triangle and Thames Valley, and at Mereoak and Winnersh Triangle that fare includes the parking (park and ride fares).

• Mereoak, off the A33 at M4 junction 11, service 600, up to every 15 minutes. £4 return, parking included.
• Winnersh Triangle, service 500, up to every 15 minutes. £4 return, parking included.
• Thames Valley, service 300, Monday to Friday 6am to 7pm. £4 return, parking charged separately at £1 an hour, capped at £4.
• Coppid Beech, lion 4 and 4a. This one is priced differently: £3 single, £6 return, with parking £1.50 for up to four hours and £3 beyond that.

Concessionary pass holders travel free but still have to buy a parking ticket at the rates above.

If you are driving in anyway, our guide to parking in Reading compares the twelve council car parks and the station multi-storey, including the two that are free all day on a Sunday.

What it means for you

If you drive into town from Whitley on Northumberland Avenue, the inbound lane at Buckland Road Circle is listed as shut to 31 October, and a separate closure on Northumberland Avenue follows from 19 to 30 October. Bus passengers heading into Reading should use Whitley Community Centre or Corbridge Road.

If you join the M4 westbound at junction 10 from the A329(M), the slip is shut 9pm to 6am on the nights of 5, 6 and 7 October. If you stop at Reading Services westbound, it is closed 9pm to 6am on the night of 8 October.

If you live on Western Elms Avenue, the closure outside numbers 44 to 55 runs to 4 October, and the parking goes with it.

If you park on London Street near numbers 73 to 77, the bay is suspended 6 to 9 October. On Wokingham Road, the bays outside numbers 3 to 15 go from 12 to 14 October.

If you catch the greenwave 50a, it cannot use Gillette Way from 5 to 30 October; use the Morrison or Whitley Park School stops.

If you drive the A4074 north of Caversham, the limit at Chazey Heath is 20mph until 16 October.

If you use Tilehurst or Pangbourne stations on Sunday 4 October, check before you go: buses replace trains between the two for most of the day.

If you live on the Amersham Road estate, the 20mph limit and five speed humps are now formally advertised. Representations close on 22 October.

Frequently asked questions

What roads are closed in Reading this week?

The inbound lane of Northumberland Avenue at Buckland Road Circle is listed as closed to 31 October. Western Elms Avenue is closed outside numbers 44 to 55 to 4 October. Wykeham Road in Newtown is closed between Grange Avenue and Palmer Park Avenue under an order running to 3 October. The Norman Road order in Emmer Green, in force since 11 September, has no published end date. Parking bays are suspended on London Street from 6 to 9 October and on Wokingham Road from 12 to 14 October.

Is the M4 closed at Reading this week?

Not at junctions 11 or 12 themselves. At junction 10, the westbound entry slip from the A329(M) southbound closes 9pm to 6am on the nights of Monday 5, Tuesday 6 and Wednesday 7 October, for surveys. Reading Services westbound closes 9pm to 6am on the night of Thursday 8 October, for drainage works between junctions 11 and 12.

Is Northumberland Avenue closed in Reading?

The inbound lane at Buckland Road Circle is closed for Thames Water, listed by Reading Buses from 11 September to 31 October. A separate council order closes Northumberland Avenue from the boundary of numbers 7 and 9 to the entrance of number 2a from 19 to 30 October, for new water connection works, with a signed diversion.

Are there train engineering works at Reading on 4 October 2026?

Yes, on both sides of Reading. Trains do not call at Pangbourne for most of the day, with replacement buses between Tilehurst and Pangbourne. Early in the morning the 08:06 Reading to Newbury is replaced by a bus at 07:51, and the 08:33 Reading to Bedwyn starts from Newbury.

Which Reading roads are being resurfaced in October 2026?

The council’s programme, last updated 28 September, has no new dates in October. Its last booked job was the northbound IDR at the A33 on the night of 2 to 3 October. All four listed jobs are still marked “Not complete”. A reserve list of twenty sections may be brought in if budget allows.

When does Norman Road in Emmer Green reopen?

The council has not said. The order that closed it came into force on 11 September and gives no end date, only the standard ceiling of eighteen months or the completion of the works, whichever is sooner. The job is replacing an electricity transformer.

Where can I see Reading roadworks on a map?

The council’s current roadworks page shows a live map fed by Causeway one.network, covering council schemes and utility works alike.

How much is Reading park and ride?

£4 return at Mereoak, Winnersh Triangle and Thames Valley, with parking included at the first two. Coppid Beech is priced separately at £3 single and £6 return, plus parking.

Sources

• Reading Borough Council, multiple traffic notices, 1 October 2026 for the Northumberland Avenue and Canterbury Road, London Street, Amersham Road estate and Sidmouth Street orders, and the Wokingham Road notice of the same date.
• Reading Borough Council, multiple temporary closures, 10 September 2026 for the Wykeham Road, Western Elms Avenue and Bath Road bus lane orders.
• Reading Borough Council temporary road restrictions, 3 September 2026 for the Norman Road order.
• Oxfordshire County Council, A4074 Chazey Heath, 1 October 2026 and West Berkshire Council, New Hill Road, Purley on Thames, 1 October 2026.
• West Berkshire Council, Englefield Road no right turn and Oxfordshire County Council, A4155 Shiplake speed limit for the two consultations and their deadlines.
• Reading Borough Council road improvements, last updated 28 September 2026, for the resurfacing programme, its completion status and the reserve list.
• Reading Borough Council current roadworks for the live one.network map.
• Reading Buses service updates for dated closures, diversions, suspended stops and the aqua 28 extra buses.
• Reading Buses park and ride fares for park and ride prices and frequencies.
• National Highways road closure report for the seven-day spreadsheet covering 2 to 8 October, and the M4 and A34 closures.
• National Rail planned works for Pangbourne and Theale on 4 October, Taplow on 3 and 4 October, Slough to Reading from 6 October, and Newbury to Bedwyn from 12 October.
• GWR planned engineering work and GWR North Downs line for the Pewsey, North Camp and Paddington to Reading dates in October.
• Traffic Management Sub-Committee, 10 September 2026 for the six schemes going to consultation, the missing minutes and the King’s Road resurfacing note.

Roadworks programmes change at short notice and reserve sites may be substituted in. Council orders are published as intentions and the dates can move. Check the live map before you travel. Sources last checked 3 October 2026.

Correction, 1 October 2026: our 29 September edition said the Northumberland Avenue inbound lane closure at Buckland Road Circle had been listed to 28 September and had run its course. Reading Buses now lists it from 11 September to 31 October, closed until further notice, and it is back at the top of this page.

Correction, 29 September 2026: our earlier editions said the Hogarth Avenue end of Bath Road was resurfaced overnight from 10 to 12 September. The council never listed that job as complete, and it is now booked for 30 September to 2 October. Our 24 September edition also said the only minutes linked from the traffic committee page dated from June 2010. They are the minutes of the committee’s previous meeting, on 10 June 2026.

Correction, 20 September 2026: our 13 September edition said the Padworth Road closure between Burghfield and Tadley AWE ended that day. Reading Buses now lists it running to 23 October, and the entry above has been corrected.