Residents of a village used as a rat run between Witney and Chipping Norton are calling for a new river bridge to be built.

Crawley residents have grown sick and tired of damage to walls, and long queues caused by vehicles cramming through their narrow streets.

They believe a new link road in Witney, running from Woodstock Road to Hailey Road and then over the Windrush to Burford Road, would alleviate the problem.

Developers of a planned 1,000-home estate in North Witney said they would fund the road.

But with West Oxfordshire District Council expected to choose West Witney and Carterton as the major home building sites up to 2026, the idea looks unlikely to get off the ground in the near future.

Crawley Parish Council chairman Stephen Kirkham said: “The traffic problem at rush hour is particularly bad.

“There is frustration in the village at the damage to walls and concern about the potential damage to properties.”

He said villagers were also worried about the danger to pedestrians and cyclists, as Crawley is on a popular walking route.

Mr Kirkham said the construction of Marriotts Walk Shopping Centre in 2009 had increased congestion by drawing shoppers from north of Witney into the town.

He added: “We can only anticipate that is going to get much worse if the West Witney development is built. The lack of strategic planning makes us very cross.

“A new river crossing is the only way our village and the other villages badly affected will be sorted.

“We understand the developers of Witney North are prepared to fund the river crossing.”

Warwick Robinson, district council cabinet member for strategic planning, said: “West Witney is the most sustainable of the options.”

He said planners had gone through a “long and detailed process” and taken into consideration elements such as impact on flooding and proximity to public transport, Witney town centre and existing services.

Rodney Rose, Oxfordshire County Council cabinet member for transport, said: “We currently have not got the sort of funding to build the link road.”

He said funding should come from the development of the West Witney site, between Downs Road and Deer Park Road.

Plans for the 1,000-home estate, which includes a new primary school, a new junction on to the A40 and shops and business, were submitted in January. The link road is not part of the scheme.

County council spokesman Owen Morton said: “As and when the planning process requires, the county council, as highways authority, will provide a response to the district council on the level of transport mitigation which may be necessary.”