WALCOT residents will face 10 weeks of disruption as a pothole-ridden road is reconstructed.

Upham Road will undergo much-needed reconstruction between Drove Road and Brixham Avenue from mid-June.

Deep excavations of up to 400mm in depth will be carried out on sections of the road which require a full reconstruction.

Once complete, the road will last for the next 40 years and stop the continual need for patch repairs on the current poor road surface.

Coun Abdul Amin, Labour Councillor for Walcot and Park North, has been pushing for these improvements for years.

He said: "This road has been an ongoing issue since I've been a councillor, people have been complaining that it needs fixing.

"When the road was built, it was never meant to cope with such a high level of traffic, especially all the buses.

"That's why my colleagues and I have been campaigning to get the road restructured and I'm pleased to see that the council have listened.

"The situation on the road has been very bad, it needed to be updated years ago but the council's budgets have been cut and it has been a challenge to find the money.

"Now we have found a budget and I'm delighted that it's finally happening

"It's a complete re-development and it will be carried out in phases to minimise the disruption as much as we can."

Letters will be sent to everyone living nearby with more information about the roadworks.

The Bus Gate at Queens Drive will not be in operation during the works to allow access for those residents living to the east of Brixham Avenue.

There will be no through route to Drove Road during the works.

However, access to Lainsmead Primary, Holy Cross Primary, Lawn Manor Academy, OK4U and Immanuel Church will be maintained throughout.

A drop-in session will be held at the Immanuel Church on May 17 from 3.30pm to 7pm.

This will give residents a chance to pop in and learn more about what's happening or speak to councillors about any concerns they have in relation to the upcoming roadworks.

Updates will be available via the council’s Highways News e-newsletter: swindon.gov.uk/newsletter