The chairman of a residents’ group which opposed the changes to the layout of Oxford Road has said his fears have come to pass after 18 months of work.

As part of Swindon Borough Council’s preparations for the New Eastern Villages, the road was widened at the Nythe Road junction.

Ron Fox who lives in the road was chairman of Stratton Against Road Changes and says the work has made things worse for him and his neighbours: “When the lights towards town at the junction of Nythe Road are at red there are now two lanes of traffic.

“When the lights change, those drivers who know that a single lane is coming rush away from the lights so that they aren’t trapped by the lane change. As more and more drivers become aware of this, the unseemly haste grows.

“The council has created a racetrack with the start line just outside my house. The widening appears to have made some drivers think that this is now a 40 mph road. I believe many drivers are well in excess of 30 mph.

“New signage will be needed to ensure that drivers comply with the speed limit of what is, after all, a residential road. What a waste of our money, when so much is needed elsewhere in the town and borough.”

Councillor Gary Sumner, Swindon Borough Council’s Cabinet Member for Strategic Infrastructure, Transport and Planning, said: “As one of the main link roads into Swindon, Oxford Road was identified as a bottleneck which already constrains traffic flow from the east of the town and congestion is only going to get worse as a result of the New Eastern Villages development.

“The junction was therefore widened before the homes in the NEV are built and will increase traffic flows and avoid increased pollution through idling cars, while also minimising the inconvenience for those living nearby.

“The funds used to improve and future-proof the road could not have been spent elsewhere and were specifically for this road and others to assist with future traffic flows.

“Oxford Road is signed as a 30mph limit, and the traffic lights are synchronised with the White Hart Junction and Gablecross to help traffic flow through the area. We will continue to monitor the area to see if any further improvements are required.

“We appreciate at this stage local residents may not yet fully see the benefits of the scheme, but as the new housing comes on stream this will be an important infrastructure improvement that will operate as a ‘valve' to enable traffic to continue to function well along this corridor.”