Reading Half Marathon road closures: Motorists urged to plan ahead on Sunday, November 7

Good luck to all local runners taking part in this year's Reading Half Marathon.

Don't forget to let us know how you get on and we can make sure you get a mention in next week's paper. Email us at newsdesk@newburynews.co.uk

The Unleashed Performance Reading Half Marathon returns on Sunday (November 7) and residents and visitors are urged to plan ahead and allow extra time for any journeys.

The streets of Reading will be taken over by thousands of runners for the half marathon as the annual event moves from its April slot as a result of the pandemic.

Participants taking part on the day range from elite athletes to enthusiastic amateur runners.

Thousands of people are expected to run in the 13.1-mile half marathon course which finishes in front of a huge crowd inside Select Car Leasing (formally Madejski) Stadium.

A further 1,000 will be taking part in the shorter Green Park Challenge.

Reading Borough Council has issued notice of a number of road closures around the route of the half marathon throughout the day and these can be viewed at www.reading.gov.uk/halfmarathon

A full traffic management system will be in place to cause the minimum amount of disruption.

Participants in the main race are due to gather at Green Park for a 10am start when they will then embark on a route around Reading, which takes in the university campus before they make their way into the town centre.

The runners will then travel westwards before heading south to the finishing line via the A33 Relief Road.

A full route map can be found at www.readinghalfmarathon.com/pages/reading-half-marathon

A series of rolling road closures and diversions will be in place at a variety of times between 7am and 4pm. Roads will be re-opened as soon as runners have passed through and it is safe to do so.

On race day there will be around 700 people manning the route.

Main arterial routes in the town centre will remain open, but access from the South will be restricted as runners get under way. Visitors travelling into Reading on the M4 are advised to use junctions 10 and 12 until 2pm to avoid delays.

Access to Hospitals: Royal Berkshire Hospital: Access from London Road; Berkshire Independent Hospital: access from Bath Rd/Berkeley Avenue; Dunedin Hospital: access from IDR – Castle Hill – Bath Rd access lane (allow for delay). Circle Hospital: access via Basingstoke Rd and Manor Farm Road.

All town centre car parks will open as normal, apart from Oracle Riverside, which will open at 12.40pm – use Oracle Holy Brook. Smallmead Household Waste Recycling Centre and access to Link Retail Park will open around 2.30pm.

Good luck to all runners. If you, or someone you know, is taking part in the Reading Half Marathon send your stories and photos to newsdesk@newburynews.co.uk