Councillor Liam Walker has welcomed Oxfordshire County Council’s decision to approve the contractor for the long-awaited A40 Eynsham to Wolvercote improvement scheme, while warning that significant concerns remain over the project and the future of transport infrastructure in West Oxfordshire.
The approval marks a major milestone in delivering the scheme and will finally unlock access to the eagerly anticipated Eynsham Park & Ride site, which has faced years of delays.
Cllr Walker said: “It is good news that this project is finally moving forward and that we will see progress on the long-awaited Eynsham Park & Ride. Residents have waited far too long for this investment, and today’s decision is an important step in the right direction.”
However, he criticised the Liberal Democrat administration at Oxfordshire County Council for what he described as years of delays and poor infrastructure planning adding: “The repeated hold-ups to this scheme have been a huge embarrassment for the Liberal Democrats. At a time when thousands of new homes are planned across West Oxfordshire, they have failed to get a grip on delivering the infrastructure local communities need.”
Cllr Walker also expressed concern over the council’s decision to change the proposed access arrangements for the Park & Ride site. “I remain worried that replacing the originally proposed roundabout with traffic lights will create another bottleneck on the A40. We only have to look at the disruption caused by the lights at Cassington to understand the potential impact on traffic flow.”
Looking ahead, he called for a renewed focus on longer-term improvements to one of Oxfordshire’s busiest roads.
“Approving this contract cannot be the end of the conversation. We need to get plans to dual the A40 between Witney and Eynsham back on the table. If we continue to build thousands of homes without matching investment in our road network, congestion will only get worse.”
Cllr Walker said the decision should now be followed by swift delivery of the scheme and a clear strategy to ensure infrastructure keeps pace with growth across West Oxfordshire.
