Assurances are being sought by Bicester town councillors that repairs will be made to a by-pass before responsibility for the road is handed over.

The Bicester southern by-pass - part of the town's ring road - is due to be handed over by the Highways Agency to Oxfordshire County Council in the autumn. The county council would then take over responsibility for maintenance.

Bicester town councillors hope that the Highways Agency will pay for any more repairs to the by-pass where it crosses the Bicester Town to Oxford railway line.

Colin Carritt, county council highways engineer at Bicester, said that the Highways Agency was expected to pay should any more work be needed.