WORK due to start on a new £6.7m railway station forecourt at Didcot Parkway has been delayed for the second time.

County council bosses said in July that the 18-month project was likely to start next month.

But the council has now issued a statement to say it cannot provide a start date until its contractor has held further talks with Network Rail and train company First Great Western, which manages the station.

It is the second time the project, which aims to landscape the forecourt and clearly mark out areas for pedestrians, cyclists, cars and buses, has faced a significant delay.

The work was originally due to start in March but was held back at least six months because of delays in tendering for contracts and delays caused by Network Rail safety checks.

County council spokesman Owen Morton said: “The contractor, Birse Construction, is in the process of gaining the necessary approvals from Network Rail and First Great Western to allow work to start on site.

“Once these permissions are received, a start date can be set.

“Birse is also engaging with parties affected by the work – such as local businesses and bus services – to allow them to operate with minimum disruption throughout the project.”

Didcot Town Council leader Margaret Davies urged the county council to start work at the earliest possible opportunity.

She said: “This is extremely disappointing news for Didcot.

“People have been waiting for this to happen for years and the funding has been in place for quite some time so it’s hard to understand what the hold-up is.

“I can’t understand why these approvals haven’t been obtained already and I am concerned that this latest delay casts doubt on whether the scheme is ever going to get off the ground.

“The county council has invested a lot of money in this project and needs to get it back on the rails.”

Jon Crampton, a spokesman for Network Rail, said: “We have assisted the local authority at every stage of the process and will continue to do so to ensure work on the scheme can begin as soon as possible.”