A BUSINESS leader has blasted the A40 as a "disaster", a "shambles" and "a shocking indictment of how not to do things".

Economic guru Jens Tholstrup, a director of world-renowned think-tank Oxford Economics, also described the main route from the west of the county into the city as "an embarrassment".

Transport bosses insisted they were "extremely committed" to improving the road.

But Mr Tholstrup, a panellist for a debate-style Economic Question Time event at the Said Business School last week, told more than 100 local business people that infrastructure weaknesses were preventing the city from fulfilling its full potential.

He said: "Oxford is already a brilliant location for businesses.

"The proximity of two great universities contributes a lot to the business community, through innovation and technology but if you want to build a world class business location, the A40 is completely hopeless."

Oxford Mail:

  • Jens Tholstrup, a director of Oxford Economics, said the A40 was "an embarrassment".

The financial expert praised Oxford’s easy access to London, Birmingham and Heathrow and the new Oxford Parkway rail station and routes.

And he said the Oxford ‘brand’ was held "in the finest esteem all over the world".

But he warned the city had become "a victim of its own success", pointing to a lack of affordable housing and congested roads as obstacles to growth.

He explained: "The housing situation is partly geographical as this is a medieval city with two rivers, but the A40 is a shambles.

"Frankly, it’s an embarrassment."

He added: "If you cost out what it is costing people to sit in all these traffic jams, it would many times more than it costs to improve the infrastructure."

He went on to question what overseas executives and investors think when they visit, for example to German-owned Siemens in Eynsham.

Oxford Mail:

  • Traffic jams are now a daily occurance on the route between Witney and Oxford

"How does it look to international visitors when they try to drive down the A40 and are confronted with that?" he asked.

His called on local political leaders "to get their act together".

The A40 is used by up to 30,000 vehicles every day and according to Oxfordshire County Council figures, 91 per cent of eastbound users in the morning rush hour came from West Oxfordshire and 72 per cent were travelling into the city.

The county council, which is responsible for roads, recently unveiled multi-million pound plans to revamp the A40.

A £38m scheme funded by government cash will see a park and ride built at Eynsham and an eastbound bus lane added to the stretch of carriageway between Oxford and the village by 2020. 

Longer-term proposals costing £54m would further add a westbound bus lane and convert the stretch of road between Witney and Eynsham into a dual carriageway.

County council spokesman Martin Crabtree said: "It is clear the council is extremely committed to improving the A40 corridor as recent decisions have shown.

"We recognise Oxford is a world class city and see improvements on the A40 as a priority and key to achieving the ambitions for the future of the city and for the future for West Oxfordshire.

Oxford Mail:

  • Keith Slater, director of business group Oxfordshire Town Chamber Network, ​said improvements were needed "urgently".

"Making these improvements needs not just the skills and vision of the county council, but also Government funding.

"We would welcome the support of people like Mr Tholstrup as we seek Government funding for the A40."

Keith Slater, a director of business group Oxfordshire Town Chamber Network, said the proposals put forward by the local authority were "somewhere towards what is needed" but a dual carriageway all the way to Oxford was a better long-term solution.

He added: "The Government needs to fund the scheme urgently. Because although you hope that these schemes may improve things, the biggest worry is that things will just get even worse when the Westgate Shopping Centre reopens next year.

"It is forecast to bring in a 40 per cent increase in retail sales and so being able to get traffic in and out of the city will be even more crucial."

In an interview with the Oxford Mail earlier this month, David Cameron said he was supportive of the "breakthrough" proposals for the A40.

And although the Witney MP said he could not use his position as Prime Minister to privilege the scheme, he vowed to lobby transport ministers to examine "clear evidence" that investment was needed in the regularly-congested road.