A CONSULTATION on the proposed Oxford to Cambridge expressway has been branded 'authoritarian' and 'undemocratic' after it was blasted by an Oxford writer.

Writing in the Guardian, George Monbiot, who lives in East Oxford, said all the key decisions on the scheme are being made 'behind closed doors', with the public only consulted on 'trivial' choices.

This has prompted a number of letters from residents to the same newspaper demanding more of a say on the proposed route for the controversial scheme.

Mr Monbiot wrote: "By the time we are asked for our opinion, there will be little left to discuss but the colour of the road signs.

"The questions that count, such as whether the new infrastructure should be built, or even where it should be built, will have been made without us."