New Road Opens Hope for Wokingham Pub

A Wokingham pub landlord says the newly opened link road could bring fresh customers after months of disruption. The route linking Heathlands Road to St Crispin's, which gives quicker access to the M4 and A329M, opened last week and Local Democracy Reporting Service timings suggest it cuts journey times.

Howard Witten, 49, who runs The Crooked Billet on Honey Hill with his fiancée Jo, said "We're quite attached to it," but business has been down 40 percent during the South Wokingham distributor road works.

He said the new road "feels faster" but added: "It's also further because it feels like it's added on to your journey.

"It'll take some getting used to. You've got to go out of Wokingham to get back in again."

Access from the town centre changed after the Easthampstead Road level crossing closed. "If the level crossing wasn't there it wouldn't be an issue. It seems like Wokingham town centre is closing down anyway by the sound of it."

The pub suffered when Heathlands Road was shut and the only northern access was the deep Gardner's Green Ford next to the pub. "When the road works started there were hundreds of people coming through the ford. When a car came the other way, people would try to reverse up and get stuck in the ditch."

"The road-works have really affected our business. Sales have been down by 40 per cent. "We've had people calling up saying 'I don't know how to get to you.'"

Still, the new link already ties Finchampstead, Crowthorne and Nine Mile Ride to St Crispin's, Coppid Beech and the strategic road network. It has a 30mph limit, wide verges and a shared footway and cycleway. Connections to Tesco and Molly Millar's Lane aren't finished yet, but this is the first completed section of the South Wokingham Distributor Road.

LDRS timings show journeys such as Crowthorne Station to Coppid Beech now take around 12 and a half minutes; Squire's Garden Centre to the M4/A329M junction under nine minutes; Nine Mile Ride to Coppid Beech about seven and a half minutes; and California Crossroads to the M4 junction around 15 minutes outside peak hours.

Ted O'Neill, Local Democracy Reporter