A PROJECT to build a fitness trail through Didcot’s Ladygrove estate is in crisis after the county council said it would not pay to maintain it.

In June, South Oxfordshire District Council put up £440,000 to improve the 4km Ladygrove Loop, which runs through the centre and south of the estate, fitting it with outdoor gym equipment and new play areas.

It also wanted to plant thousands of trees and wild flowers, as well as build new gateways at the estate’s Tyne Avenue and Cow Lane entrances.

However, the project has been put into jeopardy after Oxfordshire County Council described the scheme as “unwise” and “a future maintenance problem”.

Even though the county council would not have to pay a penny towards building the trail, its highways officers have told the district council that they will refuse to give permission to resurfacing work in case they have to pay to help maintain the footpaths in the future.

They admit that current footpaths in Ladygrove have “structural defects”, but they say they have not got the money to repair them.

Oxfordshire County Council’s head of transport Steve Howell said: “Highways officers have expressed concerns over potential maintenance costs associated with this project.

“However, we are happy to continue working with the district council to find a way forward.”

Local residents and civic leaders said it would improve the estate and encourage more people to get fit on outdoor rowing and cycling machines.

Work is due to start next spring.

District councillor John Cotton said: “I’m upset that this has become an issue because I really thought there was agreement across all the various authorities.

“This is a good project that many, many people would like to see happen, and I’m sure the county council would.

“It would give people the opportunity to enjoy their own ‘backyard’.

“To be able to pop out of your houses and enjoy games or a picnic with the family is a nice thing to have on your doorstep. This would transform parts of the estate.”

Town council leader Bill Service, who also sits on both district and county councils, said he could not see what the county council was worried about.

He said: “It’s my own opinion that there shouldn’t be a problem.

“It seems a very strange response when all these improvements are going to be made.”