traffic will keep moving despite 18,000 cars descending on Woodstock this Friday.

That is the pledge from the organisers of this year’s CLA Game Fair as they prepare for the mammoth country show.

The last time the event was held in Oxfordshire in 2008, roads around the site, the city and parts of the county came to a grinding halt.

But event control manager Tony Wall has vowed there will be no repeat of the three-hour long delays, following the introduction of a series of key changes.

He said: “People should perhaps give themselves a bit more time if they have to travel in that busy period. But I would be extremely disappointed if, with all the measures in place, we had stationary traffic for any sort of time.

“The two and three-hour-long queues that we saw in 2008 will not happen this time around.”

The game fair is one of the largest countryside events in the world. About 140,000 people are expected to attend over the three days.

It will feature exhibitions and displays of countryside activities, including archery, fishing and falconry.

The event brings in an estimated £13m into the county’s economy.

In January 2009, a review was published which branded the previous traffic chaos unacceptable.

And in November, organisers unveiled an action plan to make sure visitors were not caught up in long delays. The improvements include:

Traffic for the event will be watched over by a helicopter, a network of CCTV cameras and an unmanned spy camera flying over Peartree roundabout.

Shuttle buses will run from Oxford and Long Hanborough railway stations

The 900 exhibitors will arrive before 7.30am instead of 9am, to avoid the rush hour

There will also be recovery vehicles stationed at game fair car parks to clear any breakdowns which occur, and road cleaners to remove debris.

Traffic will be monitored from an on-site control centre and, if there are any problems, motorists will be redirected by traffic police on motorbikes.

Organisers have also paid £2,000 for Swinford Toll Bridge, near Eynsham, to be made free of charge to all motorists for the three days.

Mr Wall added: “The idea is to speed up the arrival of people to the event and, in so doing, much reduce the inconvenience suffered by local residents.”

One of the aims is to keep traffic away from Woodstock town centre.

Mr Wall said congestion would be worst between 8-10.30am on all three days but especially on Friday, when a large amount of cars are expected to arrive.

He said evenings were unlikely to be busy because organisers could control the flow of traffic leaving the site.