Never used, already crumbling: Road that cost £40m

An unused and unfinished road that has so far cost nearly £40m is "defective", a councillor has said.

The Southern Connector Road in Swindon has never been opened but already parts of it are cracking and crumbling away.

The company building it – Buckingham Group – went into administration in 2023 before its completion, with Swindon Borough Council taking on repairs, which are hoped to be finished by the end of the year.

Councillor Gary Sumner said: "I feel really, really sorry that we're at this position now that we have got a road that we can't use."

He added: "Nobody expected a road that we spent close to £40m constructing to be as defective as it's turned out to be."

Running from South Marston to north of the Commonhead roundabout, the road will serve 8,000 homes being built in the New Eastern Villages (NEV) development.

The road's current owner, administrator Grant Thornton, wants the council to pay for it so it can be handed over but the council argues it is not fit for purpose and needs repairs, including "significant" work to a bridge.

The bridge is being surveyed as it has moved significantly and is now believed to be unsafe.

Mr Sumner said: "I want to see the road completed safely, as swiftly as possible. But understanding that, there is significant concern about parts of the construction. They've got to get it right."

The council is also having to spend £440,000 on security to prevent road misuse such as illegal car racing.

Mr Sumner said villagers in nearby Wanborough "went through blood, sweat and tears" during the road's construction.

He said: "The village was shut off at different ends during the construction process and that caused huge inconvenience for a long period of time.

"There should have been cars coming up and down here by now, construction traffic for those new housing developments, and pedestrians.

"Residents should have been able to enjoy a jog or a horse ride beside this road."

Councillor Chris Watts, cabinet member for transport, said: "We're not close to a resolution but we need to start moving forward.

"There are things we can do, work we can begin, to try and enable the construction traffic for the [housing] developments to use the road."

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