We won't shed too many tears that McDonald's has suffered a 30 per cent drop in trade at Headington since the roadworks at the Green Road roundabout started.

It is big enough to look after itself. But it is of concern that the lives of thousands of people are being disrupted.

Workers are late arriving at their offices and factories, schoolchildren are being delayed, bus timetables are in shreds and goods are being held up as drivers sit endlessly in traffic queues.

The roundabout is one of the busiest in the region and it was inevitable that a major scheme to turn it into a hamburger' would cause problems.

Many people, of course, don't help themselves. Getting up and leaving home earlier in the morning and staggering their journeys would lessen the rush-hour crush and make life a little more tolerable for everyone.

But has the county council done everything it can to reduce the congestion and frustration?

Some people claim that the traffic lights have not been properly phased.

And could the work not be done at night, leaving traffic to flow more freely during the day?

Much of the work replacing the concrete surface on the A34 between Pear Tree and Weston-on-the-Green was done during darkness.

Although motorists were restricted to 40mph through the roadworks 24 hours a day, at least traffic kept moving most of the time.

With so much chaos in Headington, it is obvious that many motorists will try to find alternative routes, not all of which are suitable for the huge volumes of traffic now using them.

Villages around Headington are taking the brunt of the rat-running. Wheatley, for example, now has an almost constant stream of traffic trying to wind its way through streets built for the horse and cart.

All we ask is that drivers using narrow country and village roads take extra care and drive at sensible speeds.

The last thing we want is frustation leading to accidents.