THE council must act to prevent constant traffic jams over the Christmas period, residents say.

The call for action comes after people raised their concerns at finding the main roads around Mannington and Rodbourne repeatedly gridlocked. And they fear it will only get worse the closer it gets to Christmas.

Earlier this week, three Labour councillors – Jim Robbins, Stephanie Exell and Kevin Small – wrote to Mary Martin, the Conservative cabinet member for communities and place, urging her to address the problem of congestion in Rodbourne.

The three opposition councillors, all of whom represent the Mannington and Western wards, asked what could be done to minimise the impact of an increase in people attending the Outlet Village in the run-up to Christmas.

They wrote: “As ward councillors, we are delighted by the success of the Outlet Village and the increased customer numbers, but we are increasingly concerned that the traffic system locally can’t cope.

“Rodbourne residents have recently had to endure the over-running of the Bruce St Bridges Roundabout works and they are not happy about the gridlock every weekend at the moment caused by people accessing the Outlet Village.”

It was even suggested that, due to congestion, some local businesses are considering closing on Saturday afternoons, traditionally their busiest times.

Another issue raised was vehicle access on to Great Western Way for people living in Churchward Park.

The councillors wrote: “To have the same issues every Saturday and Sunday is causing real problems for them.

“We realise that the borough has accessed funding for Mead Way in the medium term, but we need a short-term solution.

“It used to be that increased traffic only occurred when there was a specific event at the Outlet Village or Steam, but these issues are now happening much more regularly.

“And the borough needs to have some effective plans in place to mitigate the impact for local residents.

“We are also very concerned at the impact on local businesses, many of whom struggled to stay afloat during the Bruce St Bridges roadworks, and don’t have the reserves to cope with further challenges.”

Mary Martin and Swindon Borough Council were approached for comment but were unable to respond.