Swindon’s new speedway and greyhound racing stadium in Blunsdon will be the match of any in the country, if proposals go ahead as planned, a director of Swindon Robins speedway team has said.

Steve Park also believes that the proposed facilities at the Abbey Stadium will be a boost to the local area, making them an integrated part of the community.

The plans were announced last week. Following years of delays in building a new stadium, the latest blueprints demonstrate proposals to build a new stadium on the same site.

Steve said: “Once completed, the new plans will give us a stadium to rival any speedway stadium in the UK, without losing the basic quality of the track, because we are not digging the track up.

“What the long-suffering fans of Swindon speedway will get is modern viewing facilities, from being able to watch speedway from the new viewing stands to the different types of food outlets and proper disabled access toilets.”

Acknowledging the role the stadium could play in the local community, Steve said: “The design submitted is sympathetic with the fact that we are going to be in the middle of a housing estate.

“The construction of a specialised sound barrier, significant landscaping, a footpath, a cycle path and a children’s playground should help the stadium integrate into the community.”

After years of delays – the first plans to build a new stadium were unveiled in 2015, but have been hit by setbacks, most significantly over drainage issues, since – the aim now is to get the project moving forward quickly.

Steve said: “The next stage would be to put together a very detailed plan of works, and once that’s done I would comment on the timescale.

“I think there is a desire on all sides – the council, Stadia UK [a subsidiary of Gaming International Ltd, who own the stadium] and Swindon Speedway – to get this done as quickly as is feasible.”

Gaming International chairman Clarke Osborne has previously stated that they are ready to start work on the new stadium as soon as plans are approved, and that there is a realistic chance that the Robins could be in their new stadium this season, which runs from May to August.

Under the new plans, the current grandstand would be replaced by a two-level building, designed to accommodate more than 700.