PROJECT to ease a bottleneck in west Reading will reach a significant milestone later this month.

The Cow Lane railway bridges will open fully for the first time on February 25.

The road will be tall enough to allow double decker buses to travel along it for the first time.

A cycle lane and footpath are not expected to follow until May or June, according to Councillor Tony Page, lead member for Strategic Environment, Planning and Transport.

The bridges will be closed for surfacing, from 10pm on February 22 to 11am on February 25.

Councillor Chris Maskell, chair of Reading Borough Council’s (RBC) planning application committee, said: “We will be planning something to celebrate because it is something to celebrate.

“For the first time ever there will be running traffic in both directions without lights.

“We won’t see the absolute completion of the project because there will be some tidying up to do.”

The Cow Lane bridge was demolished in November 2017 as part of an £850m scheme between RBC and Network Rail, which has been in progress since 2011.

The site has been one-way since the end of 2017 and subject to horrendous delays.

Cars were able to travel in both directions from July 2018 with a one-lane system managed by traffic lights.

The 'bottleneck' is being transformed as part of a joint scheme between RBC and Network Rail.

The scheme was due to be completed before Reading Festival in August but was delayed by six months due to what RBC called ‘unforeseen issues’ relating to ground conditions and draining problems.