"Everything that could have gone wrong has gone wrong," a leading councillor has admitted on the ill-fated Mead Way scheme which as been ongoing since March 2020.

And while the end isn't quite here just yet, it is still very much in sight for one of Swindon's most troubled roadworks projects.

The road widening of Mead Way was initially supposed to only take 20 weeks, but the work, which started before the pandemic, has been extended multiple times for various reasons all the way up until now. 

The latest deadline was September 16, after closing for overnight work, with the contractors finishing the problematic safety barrier that had caused some delays and painting new road markings. 

And while West Swindon residents woke up in the morning to discover that all lanes on Mead Way were now in use for the first time, and the bus routes were fully operational, there was still a little bit more work to be done with the bus shelters. 

Since the road reopened in November last year, the bus shelters have been in place, but rather than providing shelter to commuters they've been led down providing no help to anyone, and that remains the case. 

The council has now said that they are waiting on a date for the installation of the bus shelters and there is some remedial work on the carriageway needed over the next few weeks. 

Councillor Gary Sumner oversees all roadworks projects in the borough as part of his cabinet position.

The deputy borough leader said: “It is good news motorists can finally reap the full benefits of the Mead Way improvements which have obviously taken much longer than we hoped.

"We have invested £226m in Swindon’s roads over the last few years, yet this scheme has been by far the most challenging. Everything that could have gone wrong, has gone wrong and the installation of the safety barrier over the subway was the latest in a long line of delays for this project.

“The carriageway is fully operational, the new road markings have been painted and the bus stops are now back in use. We are waiting on our contractor to confirm a date for the installation of the bus shelters, while some remedial work will take place off the carriageway over the next few weeks.”

The latest known overspend for the road-widening scheme reported in June of this year was £1.2million, and some councillors have called for a public meeting to discuss why.