FOR every mile driven on Swindon’s roads drivers can expect to spend 41 seconds at a standstill.

Estimates from the Department for Transport show for every mile driven on the town’s A roads, a car will be delayed for that long.

It means those making a five-mile commute – for example from Redhouse to Junction 16 – should expect to spend three-and-a-half minutes in queues.

The figures also reveal average speeds on Swindon A roads have remained relatively stable at 26mph for the past three years.

A spokesman said Swindon Borough Council was trying to improve traffic flows around the town.

“Despite the ever-greater numbers of cars on the road, we do our very best to ensure traffic in Swindon flows as freely as it possibly can,” he said.

“We have just successfully completed an ambitious upgrade of Junction 16. Extra lanes have boosted capacity and the widening of the slip roads has helped to relieve congestion on the roundabout. We are also undertaking work to alleviate congestion at the Mannington roundabout. We are improving the traffic flow from Great Western Way on to Wootton Bassett Road, widening the roads and installing new traffic signs.

“The Quality Bus Corridor at Regent Circus will also allow traffic to flow through the town centre more easily.

“We have been successful in securing funding for these vital works.”

Nationally, the figures suggest the country’s traffic jams are getting worse.

In 2015, delays in England were on average more than two seconds shorter.

This affects speeds on A roads, where the average is 25mph despite speed limits ranging between 30mph to 70mph on anything from small urban roads to dual carriageways.

The DfT recently announced it was investing up to £10 million in Street Manager, a programme which will pass on up-to-date information about roadworks to sat-navs and navigation apps.

It will allow local authorities and utility companies to quickly notify users on road closures or delays. Roads minister Jesse Norman said: “Roadworks can often be frustrating for motorists, especially when they cause hold-ups at busy times and delay journeys.

“We want to reduce this disruption and delay, and Street Manager is just one of a number of actions we are taking so that local authorities and utility companies can better plan and manage their roadworks.

“The data opened up by this new digital service should enable motorists to plan their journeys better, so they can avoid works and get to their destinations more easily.”