WORK on resurfacing Headington’s London Road will now not take place until early next year.

Oxfordshire County Council had planned to do the work over the summer over concerns about the state of the road.

But while work to extend the bus lanes along London Road will begin next month, the resurfacing is being put on hold until January.

The £1.3m scheme involves the stretch between Green Road roundabout and Wharton Road.

There will be extensions to the bus lane and new cycle paths, with London Road widened around Lyndworth Close. The county council also plans to add another stretch of bus lane on the opposite side of the Green Road roundabout on the A40 towards Wheatley.

It is hoped the alterations will allow cars to pass buses that have stopped for passengers, preventing traffic from backing up.

But County councillor for Headington and Quarry Roz Smith, who has been raising concerns about the road for months, said: “This will mean months more misery for residents and visitors to Oxford who use the London Road.

“I am told a crew is sent up there every week to inspect it, but it is just a sticking plaster and I don’t know how many more months we can take. It is particularly dangerous for cyclists.”

County council spokesman Marcus Mabberley said: “The section of road we are resurfacing is three lanes. The bus lane includes a concrete strengthening layer which investigation has shown has deteriorated.

“We have decided to remove this concrete now and replace it with a new deep inlay, which will be designed to stand up to the increased traffic numbers and weights expected in future.

“This revised resurfacing scheme has required extra design work and will take longer to complete.

“The resurfacing of London Road will take place at the end of the scheme, after the improvement work is done.”

Phil Ashworth, a spokesman for Oxford Bus Company, said, “There’s no doubt that London Road in Headington badly needs resurfacing.

“However Oxford’s traffic is finely balanced and it doesn’t take much to cause gridlock. It’s important the major road schemes in Oxford are seen as a whole in order to keep disruption to our passengers and all road users to a minimum.

“It’s essential the Headington project doesn’t clash with work at Kennington, The Plain and Frideswide Square.”

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