LONG Hanborough residents fear plans to build a new 400-space car park at the village railway station will add to Oxfordshire’s traffic woes.

At an exhibition of the proposals at Christ Church in Long Hanborough yesterday, residents welcomed the part of the plans that would see the station upgraded with ticket machines, a shop and a waiting room.

However, there were fears the car park would add traffic to the already- congested A40 and A4095.

Developer CEG announced last week it would offer the land for the car park and contributions to the upgrade of the station in return for planning permission for up to 150 homes in the village.

It followed an announcement that First Great Western and Oxfordshire Local Enterprise Partnership plan to apply for £8m in government funding to upgrade the station after passenger numbers doubled.

Rod Cooke, who lives on the edge of the village, said: “We think it’s very, very bad. If you’ve got 400 car parking spaces and 150 houses, you’ve got extra cars going along the A4095, which is already backing up.”

CEG development manager Jon Allen said: “It’s a case of providing alternatives that will help to take the traffic off the roads and we will ensure we provide cycle storage within the facility.”

A further exhibition on the station plans will be held tomorrow from 10am to 3pm.