South Oxfordshire’s main waste recycling centre will be closed in the spring while improvement work is carried out.

Oxfordshire County Council will shut the Oakley Wood site, near Wallingford, for three months, from March 23.

The council plans to improve access to the site in Henley Road, Crowmarsh, reduce waiting times by doubling the number of parking spaces and bins and install new signs.

A spokesman said work was being timed so the site would ready in time to complement South Oxfordshire District Council’s new waste collection service, which will be rolled out across the district from June.

He added: “We’re conscious that the Oakley Wood centre is a little out-dated and the improvements to the site will provide a more efficient service for the residents of Oxfordshire to deposit waste from their own households.

“Feedback from our recent survey has shown that service users have particular concerns about traffic and parking management on site.

“By redeveloping the site, we will address these issues and offer an improved facility to our residents.”

During the closure, residents should use other recycling centres, the closest being Redbridge, in Old Abingdon Road, Oxford, and in Steventon Road, Drayton.

The council said comments from customers about improvements to the centres at Dix Pit, near Stanton Harcourt, and Drayton and from users of Oakley Wood had influenced the redesign of the centre.