The 1.3km road linking New Road and Shaftesbury Road across south Gillingham is now open, three years after it was finished. Here is how it works.

A new road across the south of Gillingham is open to traffic. It was built in 2023 but stayed shut while the housing around it went up.

Dorset Council announced the opening on 14 October. The road is called Madjeston Way, the name put forward by Gillingham Town Council. During construction it was known informally as Kiln Way, and the council’s earlier releases called it Principal Street.

The road at a glance
Length 1.3km, just under a mile
Links New Road (B3092) with Shaftesbury Road (B3081)
Speed limit 30mph
Walking and cycling Shared off-road cycleway and footway on both sides
Eastern end Traffic signals at Shaftesbury Road
Western end Traffic from East Stour must give way to Madjeston Way
Cost £6.31 million from the government’s Housing Infrastructure Fund

Why it took three years to open

The council said in May 2023 that construction was complete. Heidelberg Materials UK built it, with the utilities, water and drainage laid in at the same time so housing could follow.

The road then stayed closed. In its 14 October release the council says it “remained closed while the surrounding housing development progressed”, and that the development has now reached a stage where the route can open safely.

Cllr Jack Jeanes, Dorset Council’s Cabinet Member for Place Services, said: “Residents and local businesses have waited a long time to see this road open, and we know how much it matters.”

What it is for

The road is the spine of Gillingham’s southern expansion. When work began in 2021, the council said the expansion was set to deliver 1,800 homes. The land along the road is planned for:

  • new homes
  • a primary school
  • health services
  • sports pitches and play areas
  • shops and open green space

In 2023 the council said Redrow Homes would build 961 homes on the site initially, a quarter of them affordable.

The £6.31 million paid for the design, the planning approval and the construction. The council says the cost will be recovered from them and reinvested in other housing projects in Dorset.

What it means for you

  • A new way across town. The road gives a route between New Road and Shaftesbury Road across the south of Gillingham. The council says it should ease pressure on existing routes.
  • Building sites alongside. Houses are still going up beside the road. The council asks drivers, cyclists and walkers to watch for construction vehicles going in and out of the site.
  • New junction rules. At the western end, drivers coming out of East Stour must now give way to Madjeston Way traffic. At the eastern end, signals control the junction with Shaftesbury Road.
  • Paths for cycling and walking. The shared paths on both sides run off the carriageway.

Dorset Council will maintain the road as part of its highway network, which runs to about 3,800 kilometres.

For other changes on Dorset’s roads this week, see our roadworks and travel page, and for new housing schemes, our Dorset planning news.

Sources