Major Oxfordshire junction scheme receives £17.3M funding boost

A funding milestone has been reached for a major junction project near Abingdon, Oxfordshire, which means hundreds of new homes can now go ahead.

Homes England - the government's housing arm, has agreed grant funding with Oxfordshire County Council, which will provide £17.3 million for the A34 Lodge Hill Interchange scheme.
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The Vale of White Horse district council granted planning approval for the Abbey Fields development in north Abingdon for around 950 dwellings.

But until the county council was able to fund and contract the roadworks to improve traffic capacity, the housing development stopped. Now, work on the remaining 820 homes on the Abbey Fields site can go ahead.

Following the grant funding agreement (GFA), Oxfordshire County Council can now select a contractor to design and build the scheme with construction anticipated to start this summer.

"Securing funding from Homes England and appointing a design and build contractor represents major milestones for the project, and the council is now in a strong position to accelerate towards construction.

This project has been in development for a long time and is much needed and wanted by the residents of Abingdon," said Cllr Judy Roberts, Oxfordshire County Council's cabinet member for infrastructure and development strategy.

"The A34 Lodge Hill scheme will improve connectivity to and from the north of Abingdon, avoiding the town centre and making it easier for people to choose walking, cycling or taking public transport as part of their daily routine," she added.

Pauline Schaffer, director of infrastructure funding at Homes England, added: "Our multimillion-pound funding will provide strategic transport infrastructure, unlocking 820 homes in north Abingdon and supporting wider housing and economic growth in the area.

"We are committed to working with ambitious local authority partners seeking to meet their local housing needs through delivery of key infrastructure."