PLANS for a huge Bicester business park have been waved through, but not without warning about added congestion on the busy A41 after a recent fatal crash nearby.

The office park , which will bigger than 10 football pitches, was approved by councillors on Thursday eight years after the idea was originally floated.

It will be built off the A41 Oxford Road on land next to the Tesco superstore and opposite the Kingsmere estate.

The site will be made up of mostly office space, plus research and development areas, creating up to 4,000 jobs.

Cherwell District Council planning committee chairman David Hughes said: “We are pleased to see plans proceeding for this much-needed office space on a site allocated for business development in the Local Plan.

“As Bicester continues to grow, new projects such as this will be essential to allow residents to seek employment in their home town, and we want the park to have the capacity to support technology and other knowledge-driven industries which are a feature of the region.

“This would benefit the whole Bicester economy.”

Several developments are planned for the area surrounding the busy A41 into town, including Bicester Gateway business park and Bicester Gateway retail park.

District councillor for Fringford and Heyford wards Ian Corkin, while welcoming the plans, shared his concerns about added congestion following the recent fatal crash.

Thomas Nelson, from Wallingford, died after his BMW car collided with a pedestrian, veered off the A41 and crashed into a tree near the Wendlebury Interchange on August 10.

Mr Corking said although the circumstances of the crash were still under investigation, it was still ‘a part of the story for the A41’.

He added: “My appeal to officers is to take a holistic approach to that entire run of the A41: communities at the top of it, just because they are out of sight they should not be out of mind.

“They bear the brunt of the commendable growth happening in Bicester.

“I support the application but on basis there is a really thorough review of what can be done along that section of road, because in my opinion it is a really dangerous section.”

Mr Hughes added: “The committee recognise there is cause for concern in respect of the impact the new business park would likely have on traffic.

“However, members still feel that there is the potential to address these concerns.”