A £1.5M DEAL that will see the city council in charge of fixing problems on all of Oxford's roads should be adopted fully next month.

In a major switch, the city and county councils agreed back in April that the former's company would be responsible for work done on major routes, including Botley and Cowley Roads.

But negotiations have dragged on for months and are still incomplete. It is understood there are niggles about which council will pay for key works, including filling potholes.

The city council's company Oxford Direct Services is already working on the roads as part of an interim agreement, ahead of the arrangement being fully rolled out.

As part of the year-long contract, ODS will be employed to take on work including resurfacing roads and maintaining road lines, road signs and drains.

That would have been done by Skanska, the county council's contractor. But the firm will still be responsible for other work across the county outside Oxford.

County council spokesman Martin Crabtree said: “We are working closely to finalise the details of the agreement that will see day to day repairs and decisions for the city’s roads made by the city council.

"In the meantime the city council is carrying out repairs in the city as our contractors, as an interim arrangement.

"The contractors we had doing this work in the city are now deployed elsewhere in the county.

"We are working towards the agreement coming into effect in September."

The county council remains in charge of major road building, street lights and traffic lights. The city council was already responsible for minor roads under delegated powers from the county council,

It is hoped the changes will mean a better, more responsive service for road users in Oxford. ODS has a depot in the city and Skanska does not.

In July, the county council said it was encouraging parish and town councils to fund work and fill potholes.

'Eyes and ears volunteers' could also be used to reduce the need for councils to send its officers across the county.

While 'FixMyStreet superusers' – another type of volunteer – might be used to order pothole repairs using the council's intervention instructions.

Last month the county council's cabinet approved pushing an extra £10m into the roads budget – after freezing winter weather badly damaged roads.

Also in July, the leader of a town council said he hoped his district council could seek further powers to promote similar arrangements.

Steve Connel, Didcot Town Council's leader, said he thought similar arrangements should be extended to South Oxfordshire to improve the quality of roads there.