This week on Winchester Now:
- Ongoing roadworks around Winnall have caused much disruption to local residents, commuters and businesses in the area for many months. Today, Friday 31st July, sees the first of three full-weekend closures over the coming months when the whole of the Winnall roundabout at junction 9 on the M3 will be shut to traffic – although the M3 itself will remain open – as work continues on remodelling the junction. Anna O’Brien spoke to John Powell, a Director at Downs Carpets & Beds, about how the prolonged period of roadworks in the area is impacting trade.
- The Junction 9 roundabout at Winnall is closed completely this weekend, from 9pm on Friday until 6am on Monday. This means that:
- All M3 junction 9 entry and exit slip roads will be closed both northbound and southbound.
- The A34 southbound will be closed from Bullington Cross.
- The A34 northbound will be closed to Three Maids Hill, also closing the A33 northbound to the Cart & Horses Junction.
- The A33 southbound will be closed from the Cart and Horses junction.
- The A272 Spitfire Link will be closed both northbound and southbound from the Spitfire roundabout junction with the A31.
- Easton Lane will be closed at the Tesco Roundabout – all access to Tesco and the many trade and shopping parks will be possible only from the city-centre end of Easton Lane or via Winnall Manor Road, no doubt causing significant congestion.
- The M3 junction 9 northbound entry slip road will remain closed until winter 2027. Traffic will have to:
- take the A33 north and join the M3 and junction 7;
- go south to Junction 11 before leaving and joining the northbound carriageway; or
- take the A34 north to Bullington Cross and then take the A303 eastbound to M3 junction 8.
- News-in-brief:
- A drought has been declared across Hampshire as the dry weather continues. The Environment Agency announcement covers more than half of England, with the weather impacting water supplies. A hosepipe ban is already in place for Winchester, and the fire service is urging people to take care with a heightened risk of wildfires. Meanwhile, the Environment Agency will continue to monitor river levels.
- A car park in Winchester could be redeveloped for housing, according to the Hampshire Chronicle. St Peter’s Car Park off North Walls, has been earmarked for 30 new affordable homes. Councillors will consider the plans on 25th August, and decide whether to start preparing a planning application. The car park was built in the 1980s as a temporary facility, and has 180 spaces.
- Meanwhile, the City Council has revealed more details about its plans to repair and preserve Winchester Guildhall. £5m has been allocated for the work, which will begin next Spring, and will mean the building will be closed for 14 months. As we reported last week, the city council is also looking to find a new operator to manage the Guildhall from April 2028.
- The Orthopaedic Centre at Winchester Hospital has marked a major milestone, after treating its 1000th patient. The extra capacity at the hub is enabling increased planned orthopaedic surgery and helping patients to receive treatment sooner. The centre provides procedures such as hip and knee replacements.
- The stage has been set for this year’s Boomtown Festival, which starts on 12th August. Construction of the site at the Matterley Bowl is well underway – with more than 70,000 people expected to attend. Residents are being warned of increased traffic, road closures and diversions during the event.
- Hampshire Police are celebrating volunteering with the 195th anniversary of the Special Constabulary. Special Constables give their free time to support frontline policing officers. Last year Special Constables handled more than 6,000 incidents including assaults, missing persons and road traffic collisions. They also support major events, and conduct neighbourhood patrols.
- Summer Cook spoke to Maddy Thompson to hear more about the work of the Winchester Hospice, as the charity gears up to mark 5 years of hospice care this autumn since opening its doors, and to find out more about the ‘Purple Night Walk’ fundraiser for the hospice, taking place on Saturday 19th September.
