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Daytime closure of Oxford Road, High Wycombe from Mon 26th to Thu 29th Oct 2015 for completion of Westbourne Street Link Road

| October 15, 2015

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Work on the on Westbourne Street Link Road, part of the Wycombe Masterplan, is expected to be completed in November 2015.

The Link Road is the first phase in a £2 million joint scheme by Buckinghamshire County and Wycombe District Councils to give traffic an alternative route through the town centre from Oxford Road to Marlow Hill.

Before the construction team can link the rebuilt Oxford Road with the extended Westbourne Street they need to create a junction with a roundabout. Work is expected to take four days, involve heavy machinery and take up the whole width of Oxford Road.

A stretch of Oxford Road between The Pastures and Bellfield Road will need to close during the day between 6.00am on Monday 26th October 2015 until 7.00pm on Thursday 29th October 2015. This closure is in addition to night closures.

Mark Shaw, Buckinghamshire County Council Cabinet Member for Transport, said: ‘I’m sorry we have to close the road during the day, but this way we avoid any safety risks to drivers, pedestrians and the workforce.

The daytime closure coincide with schools’ half-term holiday during which the volume of traffic will significantly reduce.

During the daytime closure traffic will be re-routed along the same roads as the overnight diversions that have operated successfully for the past five months.

Alterations will also be made to the traffic signals at the junctions of The Pastures and Bellfield Road to help traffic flow as smoothly as possible across the town centre.

Mark Shaw added : ‘I fully appreciate this won’t be an easy time for drivers, and I apologise in advance for the inconvenience. I believe the short term pain will bring long term gain in making it easier to get into and out of the town centre.

The scheme of part of Wycombe District Council’s plan to create an alternative route for traffic round, rather than through, the town.

David Johncock, Wycombe’s Cabinet Member for Planning and Sustainability, said : ‘I’m excited about this project because this is about far more than improving the town’s roads – it’s about improving the heart of the town.

When it’s fully completed, the alternative route will help to open up the town centre, reconnect all parts of the historic heart and create better spaces for people to enjoy themselves. The scheme uses an innovative street design that will ensure that traffic can flow in a steady way and safely share a common space with pedestrians.

Phase 2 of the alternative route, from the Southern end of the new Westbourne Street Link, along Desborough Road through the old gas works to Marlow Hill roundabout, is anticipated to start by March 2016.

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