One lane of the Robin Hood roundabout is shut to 16 August and night resurfacing to 28 August. Current works, key routes and where to park in Newbury.
Newbury’s traffic is decided by four roads and one roundabout. The A34 runs north to south past the west of the town carrying Southampton docks traffic to the Midlands. The M4 crosses it at junction 13, Chieveley. The A4 runs east to west through the middle. The A339 comes up from Basingstoke, threads past the town centre and meets the A4 at the Robin Hood roundabout, which is where most of Newbury’s queues start.
That roundabout is being rebuilt right now.
What is happening on the roads this month
Robin Hood roundabout, Newbury. The north-west corner of the roundabout is being widened to two lanes for traffic heading towards Shaw and the A4 Thatcham, with traffic signal upgrades, vegetation clearance and new road markings. One lane of the roundabout is closed 24 hours a day from Monday 27 July to Sunday 16 August 2026. Resurfacing follows immediately after, 7pm to 7am from Monday 17 August to Friday 28 August, with some turns unavailable on particular nights. (Newbury Today, 25 July 2026)
A339 northbound at Kings Road roundabout. Lane closure on Wednesday 26 August, 9.30am to 3.30pm, to renew a damaged gully cover.
A34 northbound, Speen to Donnington. Overnight carriageway construction by National Highways on 13 and 14 August, 10pm to 6am.
Burys Bank Road, Greenham. Closed between the Crookham Hill junction and the Crookham entrance to the Control Tower car park on Friday 14 August, 9.30am to 3.30pm, to replace a telephone pole. Residential and blue light access is kept open throughout. If you were planning a trip to Greenham Common Control Tower that day, go round via Pyle Hill. (Newbury Today, 2 August 2026)
For anything happening today rather than this month, West Berkshire and National Highways both publish to one.network, which is the map the council’s own roadworks page points at.
The routes that always matter
The A34 is not a local road. It is the trunk route between Southampton and the Midlands, and when it shuts, Newbury gets the traffic. National Highways runs its resurfacing and barrier work overnight and at weekends for that reason, and its standard diversions send heavy goods vehicles round by the M4 and M40 rather than through the town. If you hear the A34 is closed at Chieveley, the A4 and the A339 are what fills up.
M4 junction 13 at Chieveley is where the A34 and the M4 cross, and it is also where the Moto services sit. It is the only realistic place near Newbury to leave a lorry or a motorhome, because the council does not provide for either in its car parks and points drivers to Chieveley or Tot Hill instead.
The Robin Hood roundabout is the A4 and A339 junction on the north-east edge of town, and the current works are an admission that it does not have enough lanes. Until 28 August, treat any journey across it in the evening as costing extra time.
Parking in Newbury
West Berkshire Council runs 27 car parks across the district. In Newbury it controls roughly 1,800 spaces on weekdays and 1,950 at weekends, with 92 to 99 Blue Badge bays and 11 to 13 electric vehicle bays depending on the day. Another 1,519 spaces in the town are run by other operators, with 71 accessible bays and 10 charging points among them.
| Town | Council spaces | Blue Badge bays | Other operators' spaces |
|---|---|---|---|
| Newbury, Monday to Friday | 1,800 | 92 | 1,519 |
| Newbury, weekend | 1,950 | 99 | |
| Thatcham | 440 | 26 | 217 |
| Hungerford | 159 | 5 | 200 |
Which Newbury car park to actually aim for
The council publishes turnover for each car park, meaning tickets sold against spaces available. A figure above 100% means the spaces are being reused several times a day and the car park is under pressure. It is the most useful thing in the strategy, because the busiest car parks in Newbury are the small central ones and the emptiest are the large ones a few minutes’ walk further out.
| Car park | Spaces | Blue Badge | Turnover 2019/20 | Turnover 2021/22 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Corn Exchange | 70 | 3 | 335% | 289% |
| Northcroft Lane | 17 | 0 | 273% | 198% |
| Wharf | 38 | 9 | 234% | 243% |
| Central KFC | 42 | 4 | 225% | 227% |
| Kennet Centre | 415 | 21 | 206% | 152% |
| Pelican Lane | 74 | 0 | 201% | 178% |
| Library | 92 | 2 | 193% | 167% |
| West Street | 23 | 0 | 182% | 168% |
| Eight Bells | 31 | 3 | 151% | 162% |
| Football Club | 65 | 2 | 115% | 131% |
| Northbrook multi-storey | 305 | 22 | 51% | 31% |
| Goldwell Park | 66 | 4 | 46% | 29% |
| Northcroft Lane West | 120 | 0 | 34% | 13% |
| Station (daily) | 345 | 17 | not published | |
The Corn Exchange car park has 70 spaces and turns them over more than three times a day. The Northbrook multi-storey, five minutes away, has 305 spaces and runs at 31%. Northcroft Lane West has 120 spaces and runs at 13%, the emptiest car park in the district. If you are driving into Newbury on a Saturday, those two are where the space is.
Three more things worth knowing before you park.
- Blue Badge holders park free in every council car park except Newbury Corn Exchange and Newbury Library, where the normal charges apply to everyone.
- Four Newbury car parks are pay on foot, so you take a ticket on the way in and pay when you leave: Corn Exchange, Kennet Centre, Library and Northbrook. Northcroft Lane West closes at 22:00.
- On-street is limited. There are 469 designated on-street charged spaces across Newbury, Thatcham and Hungerford in total. Thirteen car parks have Park Mark safer parking accreditation, ten of them in Newbury. Motorcycle bays are free in seven Newbury car parks and in Cheap Street and Kings Road West.
Charges are agreed annually at the council’s budget-setting meeting and were changed again for 2026, so the tariff board in the car park and the council’s parking charges page are the only figures worth trusting on the day.
There is no park and ride, and none is planned
This is the question the council gets asked most often about Newbury traffic, and its own Parking Strategy answers it plainly: “There are no current plans for introducing park and ride in West Berkshire.” The strategy adds that if a park and ride were built for Newbury, it would be expected to reduce town-centre parking rather than add to it.
The other number in that document is the one that explains why charges keep rising. Running the parking service cost £2 million in 2023/24 and brought in £3.1 million, a net £1.1 million to the council, which the strategy notes is considerably less than it used to be.
What changes next
The Kennet Centre permission granted in April 2026 keeps the multi-storey car park and adds a floor to it, giving 477 spaces there plus 80 on the site itself, 557 in total. Highways officers told the planning committee that traffic from 317 new homes would be lower than the shopping centre’s historic peaks, that surveys showed the multi-storey was underused, and that over 250 spaces would still be free on a busy Saturday. The scheme also brings a two-way cycle route on Bartholomew Street, new signal junctions, resurfacing and a £70,000 contribution towards better pedestrian routes to the Market Street multi-storey. The detail is on our Newbury planning page.
Frequently asked questions
What roadworks are there in Newbury right now?
The Robin Hood roundabout is being widened, with one lane closed around the clock until 16 August 2026 and night resurfacing from 17 to 28 August. There is also an A339 lane closure at Kings Road roundabout on 26 August, overnight A34 work between Speen and Donnington on 13 and 14 August, and a daytime closure of Burys Bank Road on 14 August.
Why is the Robin Hood roundabout being dug up?
To widen the north-west corner to two lanes for traffic heading towards Shaw and the A4 Thatcham, with new signals, markings and vegetation clearance.
Is there a park and ride in Newbury?
No. West Berkshire Council’s Parking Strategy says there are no current plans to introduce park and ride anywhere in the district.
How many parking spaces are there in Newbury?
The council controls about 1,800 spaces on weekdays and 1,950 at weekends, and other operators run a further 1,519 in the town.
Where is the easiest place to park in Newbury?
On the council’s own turnover figures, the Northbrook multi-storey (305 spaces, 31% turnover) and Northcroft Lane West (120 spaces, 13%) are the emptiest. The Corn Exchange car park, with 70 spaces and 289% turnover, is the hardest.
Where can I park a lorry or a motorhome near Newbury?
Not in a council car park. West Berkshire does not provide for either and directs drivers to Chieveley or Tot Hill services. Coach parking is available at Newbury Wharf bus station for operators registered with the council.
Where do I check live roadworks in West Berkshire?
one.network carries both the council’s and National Highways’ works, and is what the council’s own roadworks page links to.
Sources
- West Berkshire Council Parking Strategy 2024 to 2034 for car park counts, Blue Badge and electric vehicle bays, turnover, on-street spaces, Park Mark accreditation, motorcycle and coach parking, the parking service’s cost and income, and the park and ride position.
- Newbury Today, 25 July 2026 for the Robin Hood roundabout widening and resurfacing dates.
- Newbury Today, 2 August 2026 for the Burys Bank Road and A34 Speen to Donnington closures.
- West Berkshire Council, Western Area Planning Committee, 10 September 2025, minute 2(1) for the highways evidence on the Kennet Centre scheme, including the 557 parking spaces, the Bartholomew Street cycle route and the £70,000 pedestrian contribution.
- one.network for live roadworks.
Roadworks dates move, particularly for weather. Check one.network before you set off. What the trains are doing instead is on Newbury trains to London.
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