These pictures of flooding, many of them from 2012, show just how devastating the problem can be for Oxford when key roads into the city are cut off.
Over the years both the Abingdon and Botley roads have been badly hit by flooding.
One of the worst years was 2012 and residents flooded Twitter with their own pictures of the chaos the flood waters created over several days.
So far this winter there have been no problems but they can never be ruled out until plans for £150m flood channel for the city are completed.
Read again: Rail bridge replacement expected to delay Oxford flood channel
Oxford Flood Alleviation Scheme will begin north of Botley Road and ends south of the A423 near Kennington, where it joins the River Thames.
In August 2019 it emerged that the replacement of a rail bridge was expected to delay the channel.
The county council needs to replace the Kennington rail bridge, which carries the A423, because bearings that support it have worn away and there is no cost-effective way of replacing them.
A statement on the Environment Agency website, dated September 2019, says: "In 2019 Oxfordshire County Council found that the A423 Kennington railway bridge (Southern by-pass), in the south of the proposed scheme area, needed to be replaced. Floodwater from the scheme will need to pass underneath the A423 bridge.
Read more: New Oxfordshire Bishop is announced
"Now that the bridge needs replacing it can be designed from the outset to take this into account. Replacement of the bridge alongside the scheme provides an opportunity to design and build the bridge and the scheme together reducing disruption and ensuring the best use of public money.
"This will require changes to the planning application, compulsory purchase order and supplementary applications for the Oxford Flood Alleviation Scheme.
"These had all been made in 2018. Fresh applications will be made to incorporate the necessary changes.
"The Oxford Flood Alleviation Scheme has been shown to be the best long term solution for Oxford. The Environment Agency and all the scheme partners remain fully committed to delivering the scheme.
Read more: What Oxford traders think about a return to Covid tiers
"The scheme design will remain fundamentally the same. With climate change, flooding will become more frequent and severe and this is the best option to reduce flooding in Oxford when a major flood occurs in the future."
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules hereLast Updated:
Report this comment Cancel