INVESTIGATIVE work has started on one of Oxford’s most congested junctions as highway chiefs order a third hamburger roundabout.

Consultation on the finer details of the scheme for the Kennington roundabout, where Abingdon Road meets the Southern Bypass, has started.

The plans are similar to the improvements carried out to the Green Road and Heyford Hill roundabouts.

Council workers are carrying out preparatory ground investigations at the Kennington roundabout.

Oxfordshire County Council is also planning improvements to the Hinksey Hill junction with the A34.

Cabinet member for transport Rodney Rose said: “This is something that has been on our books for a while. There is no point improving one or two roundabouts without tackling the whole ring road.”

The council has budgeted £2m for the improvements. It is hoped work could start as early as this autumn and finish by summer next year.

traffic heading from the Kennington roundabout to turn onto the southbound A34 at Hinksey Hill will get a new lane, to avoid the existing light-controlled A34 junction.

New lanes will then be built at the Kennington roundabout, letting eastbound traffic flow straight through the centre of the ‘burger’.

There will also be more lanes for westbound traffic, creating separate lanes for those travelling into the city and those heading towards the A34.

Mr Rose added: “All our research at Green Road roundabout shows that the hamburger-style has been superb. So I think it will work well here.

“Obviously we’d love to have lots of money to build bigger roundabouts and three lanes all the way round, but that isn’t going to happen.”

Under the new plans, the existing underpass for pedestrians and cyclists will stay, with the subway extended to support the lanes overhead.

The exploratory work has been causing long delays for drivers over the past week, but news of the planned improvements has been welcomed.

Taxi driver Stuart Thomas, 38, said: “These roundabouts are a nightmare at times so anything that can help is good news. It took me 57 minutes to get from Abingdon to the Churchill Hospital this week, so something needs to happen.”

He added: “This is something I’ve thought could have been done for a while. There is plenty of space on either side of the carriageway, so I don’t know why they didn’t do this years ago.”

Akhtar Hussain, who works for Oxford’s 001 Taxis, said: “The traffic is very bad when you are turning right into Abingdon Road.

“This will definitely help. It has been successful in Headington and it has been successful at Heyford Hill, so it will be here too.”

The consultation runs until Friday, May 25. The current roadworks are expected to last until tomorrow.