TRANSPORT bosses should prioritise existing roads in Oxfordshire before considering a link road between Oxford and Cambridge, drivers have said.

Highways England has appointed researchers to explore options to build an “expressway” between Oxford, Milton Keynes and Cambridge.

The £512,000 study will look to make use of existing roads, but consider building new ones to fill in missing transport links.

It will extend as far as the A34’s junction with the M4, which has sparked mixed views from drivers around the county.

Some drivers have said that pouring money into a study is a waste, and that the current roads should be improved before any more are built.

HGV driver Bill Service, who works at RAF Benson, said he thought most people would be interested in improving the existing roads, such as turning the A34 into a motorway.

The 62-year-old said: “As far as I’m concerned, they are going to link up some existing roads with other roads.

“The A34 is horrendous, if you look at the amount of traffic that uses it, it should become a proper motorway all the way up to the M40 .”

The study is part of the Government’s Road Investment Strategy and is one of six across the country.

It is hoped the road link would give residents better access to jobs and break down a “knowledge barrier” between the cities because of the current poor transport links.

This study is part of the £50m investment into the A34 which is part of a £15 billion package to be rolled out across the county over the next four years.

But transport expert Hugh Jaeger branded the whole study a “waste of half a million pound” and said the Government was “jumping the gun”.

He added the East-West rail link would be more efficient than building an expressway and that the Government should wait to see how transporting goods by freight train fared as an alternative to HGVs.

He said: “Transporting goods by freight would be much better value both economically and for the environment .”

MP for Oxford West and Abingdon Nicola Blackwood said she welcomed the feasibility study in line with her campaign for investment in the A34.

Ms Blackwood added that she would be meeting with the Roads Minister to find out more.

Oxfordshire County Council director for infrastructure planning Bev Hindle said they welcomed the study.

He added: “We are pleased to see the inclusion of the A34 in the study which is a critical north-south route for Oxfordshire.”