The Piccadilly Roundabout will be upgraded Picture: GOOGLE MAPS WORK will start in January on the next major road schemes to enable the eastward expansion of Swindon. Swindon Borough Council is upgrading the Piccadilly Roundabout in Covingham as part of the plan to improve roads which will be used by traffic coming from the 8,000-house New Eastern Villages expansion. The central island will be made bigger, and the roads on approach widened for the junction to be able to take greater volumes of traffic. Controlled crossings for pedestrians and cyclists, new road markings and better drainage are also part of the upgrade.
The doors of the Oasis have been shut since the second national lockdown A CROSS-PARTY effort to get the Oasis Leisure Centre reopened is under way.
Swindon Borough Council leader David Renard has set up a taskforce – known as a Cabinet Member Advisory Group – after news the iconic facility in North Star is to close after 44 years. He will chair a group featuring four of his Conservative colleagues and three Labour councillors, who will look at the options for bringing the Oasis back to life. While the council owns the land and building, Seven Capital has a 99-year lease and had specialist leisure operator GLL – trading as Better – running it.
Yesterday was a huge day for Swindon with the first Covid vaccines being administered at the Great Western Hospital. I’m sure every reader would join me in saying a big thank you to our NHS colleagues, who have made this all possible as we begin the first steps towards returning to a normal way of living. The roll-out of the vaccine will take some time, so I would encourage everyone in the Borough to keep following the public health guidance so we do not see another spike in cases. There is still a long way to go in our battle with Covid before we can begin to let our guard down.