Critics of a controversial relief road in Oxfordshire have raised further concerns after discovering the county council will not receive as much money for the development as expected. 

The Watlington Relief Road scheme aims to provide alternative route and direct access to the B4009 on either side of Watlington, to reduce congestion, noise and air pollution in the town centre.

Despite bidding for £7.1 million in central grant funding, which would come from the Oxfordshire Housing and Growth Deal, the county council confirmed that the scheme does not qualify for all the funding it expected to receive.

Oxfordshire County Council remain committed to building the road and will use money from the 2025/26 Budget to fund the rest of the development.

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Debbie Davies, a member of Oxford Roads Action Alliance said: "The county council has talked about redesigning the road as a 20mph spine road, forming a spine through housing estates, instead of the 30mph relief road scheme it submitted last year.

“Whether it is a spine road, an edge road or a relief road, we are still unclear why the county would prioritise building a new road in their 2025/26 budget when it has unfunded transport schemes that contribute directly to people travelling sustainably that do not increase traffic."

Labour Councillor Charlie Hicks said he planned to ask a question about whether the county council would prioritise “maintaining the quality our existing roads, road safety and climate, ahead of new costly road capacity-increasing schemes” to at the next county council meeting on Tuesday, November 5.

He pointed out that: “Oxfordshire has a £335 million funding gap in filling potholes, and fixing roads and pavements, which is the number 1 issue for local residents”.

(Image: ORAA)

Shirburn Parish Council have also released a statement, which said: “Shirburn already suffers from speeding traffic and is a road traffic accident Black Spot. 

"This induced traffic volume will increase the danger to residents and their children who have to cross the B4009 to go to school and access the local amenities.

“The traffic and the extensive residential development will cause harm to the Conservation village of Shirburn, the roadside Listed buildings and the Chilterns National Landscape.

“The existing “Dark Skies” will be polluted by the illumination of the WRR.”

Councillor Robert Parker, chair of the parish council, said: “The new housing developments in Watlington already have planning permission granted with no requirement for a Watlington Relief Road to be built.

"The Air Quality in Watlington has been within the regulatory limits for several years now.

“Irreversible damage to wildlife, including Red Listed species, would be inflicted by this road.”

The Parish Council added that they asked to meet with the county council given the revisions to the planning application, as well as an update on how the road would be funded.

The Watlington Relief Road project team confirmed that they recently wrote to Shirburn Parish Council to arrange a meeting.

When contacted for comment, Councillor Judy Roberts, Oxfordshire County Council’s cabinet member for Infrastructure and Development Strategy, said: “Watlington is a historic market town which regularly experiences traffic-related challenges due to the town centre’s narrow roads.

 “The proposed Watlington Relief Road aims to bring much needed mitigation to this legacy of congestion, noise and air pollution, as well as enable future housing developments in the vicinity of Watlington and facilitate more sustainable modes of transport including cycling and walking."

Oxfordshire County Council submitted the planning application in December 2023, and sent an updated application to the local planning authority at the end of October.

The local planning authority will upload the application to the online planning portal at the start of November, and a consultation will follow. 

A decision will be made early next year.