Woodley to Reading Active Travel Route

Work set to start on Woodley to Reading Active Travel Route

We’re progressing plans for a new cycle link from Woodley’s town centre into Reading Borough at Palmer Park with works due to start on 26 January 2026. This will be completed in phases, connecting the precinct to Palmer Park via Woodlands Avenue, Church Road, Palmerstone Road and Culver Lane.

Construction works will start at the eastern end of Woodlands Avenue and progress towards Palmer Park. Have a look at the detailed plans and a summary of the route. These works will take place in sections, with rolling road closures and diversions along Woodlands Avenue from 26 January until mid-August.

Further works will take place on Church Road and Culver Lane, which we expect to start in summer 2026. We’ll announce more details nearer the time. We’re preparing detailed maps showing the different works sections and diversions, and will add these to this website as soon as we can. Until then, you can see the closures and diversions that are starting on 26 January, then in March, April, May, June and July. Also see the interactive map on the Causeway One Network website. This scheme is funded by the Department for Transport (DfT) via Active Travel England.

Changes to the design based on your feedback

We've consulted residents several times and made changes based on your comments, including:

• Ensuring the road on Woodlands Avenue, between Howth Drive and Crockhamwell Road, is at least 5.5m wide, and removing proposals to make it one-way
• Keeping the Woodlands Avenue lay-bys next to the park and green space.
• The shared-use path on Woodlands Avenue, between the leisure centre and Church Road, will remain. It may be widened, subject to future funding.
• Making the section under the railway bridge to Palmer Park entrance on Culver Lane shared use.

Why we're building the Woodley to Reading Active Travel Route

This is one of the key routes which were identified in our borough-wide Local Cycling and Walking Infrastructure Plan (LCWIP)  following consultation. We asked residents to choose from 3 locations to spend our DfT funding on, and this was highlighted as the most likely to encourage more active travel. The link will create a safe, inclusive and direct access to Woodley town centre while connecting it to several schools and leisure facilities. 

We want to provide as many of the routes outlined in our LCWIP as possible, but this will require substantial investment and we’re mainly dependent on funding from grants and from developers building new housing in the borough. Providing this first link in the network will show the funding bodies that we’re serious about providing high-quality infrastructure. It will therefore help us attract more funding from the DfT in future. We’ll be monitoring the performance of this route once it’s finished to assess its success and learn lessons for  future active travel schemes.

Why improve active travel provision?

We want to help everyone to make walking and cycling the natural choice for shorter local journeys, and parts of longer ones where possible. Increasing cycling and walking can help us tackle pressing issues like improving air quality, combating climate change, improving people’s health and wellbeing, addressing inequality and tackling congestion on our roads. 

This supports our overarching ambition to work towards a fair, green, safe and connected borough as well as our Climate Emergency Action Plan and our Local Transport Plan.