Action to tackle congestion on the A34 through Oxfordshire has been ruled out by the Government.

The decision has sparked warnings that major housing developments along the A34 are being put at risk -- making nonsense of Government demands for thousands of extra homes in the region.

Following a series of A34 closures, the Government has been under pressure to investigate upgrading Oxfordshire's busiest trunk road.

With major housing developments in the pipeline in Didcot and Bicester, both Oxfordshire County Council and the regional assembly are demanding major investment in the roads infrastructure.

But Junior Transport Minister Charlotte Atkins has ruled out any further study on the A34 as unnecessary in the foreseeable future.

Keith Mitchell, leader of Oxfordshire County Council, said: "The Government has decided to kick the issue of the A34 into the long grass, and this at a time when there is so much pressure on us to build.

"The implications of this decision is that we can't have any substantial housing growth anywhere in Oxfordshire.

"On the one hand we've seen the Highways Agency object to planned growth because of the impact on the A34. Now a minister says it is not a problem sufficiently serious to be worth addressing."

In a letter to the county council, Ms Atkins said: "Rather than pressing ahead with further study work on the A34 corridor now, I think it would be better for regional partners to consider how the corridor's potential needs rate against other projects that people are hoping to find a place in the programme over the next few years."

Chris Cousins, the county council head of sustainable development, said: "We do not know what the answers are. But unless we have the study that we're asking for, it is difficult to reach sensible judgements.

The South East England Regional Assembly (Seera) has called for an urgent meeting with Ms Atkins and ministers from the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister to raise concerns about the A34.

Oxfordshire Chamber of Commerce president Keith Slater said: "If the Government has decided not to make the A34 a priority it is very disappointing. I would have thought the fact it is the fifth most congested road in the UK would have made it high up on the priority list, and it is going to get worse."