A road in Oxford finally reopened after being shut for approximately 41 months with the project surpassing the cost of the London Eye.
The scheme to replace the Botley Road rail bridge and redesign the surrounding layout cost nearly £90million more than the London landmark, which was erected in just 14 months for the equivalent of £150million in today’s money.
Costs surged by 47 per cent from an original budget of £161million to a whopping £237.4million, despite the project actually being scaled back, with a planned new platform and western station entrance still awaiting funding.
The road had been closed since April 2023 as part of Network Rail’s wider Oxford station upgrade programme.
Construction was originally supposed to wrap up by October 2024, but a succession of unforeseen engineering obstacles pushed the timeline far beyond initial estimates.
Among the most significant setbacks was the unearthing of a Victorian brick arch hidden beneath the road, which had not appeared in any existing surveys or records.
A Second World War-era grenade was also found on site.
Builders then encountered what Network Rail described as an intricate web of utility pipes and cables requiring complex diversions, involving drainage and water infrastructure beneath the carriageway.
The new railway bridge was massively delayed and over budget
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FACEBOOK/COUNCILLOR LIAM WALKER
By January 2025, the rail operator had drawn up a revised schedule prioritising getting the road open again, targeting August 2026.
That deadline also slipped after excavation work in July uncovered a gas pipe requiring urgent replacement directly under the road surface.
Community campaigner Julian Le Vay estimated in January that businesses along the route had collectively lost around £50million, with more than 120 jobs disappearing.
Several enterprises shut their doors entirely, citing the road closure as the cause, including Courtney Pianos and Pickle & Lime Grocers.
Others, such as Adrian James Architects and Aldens Butchers, relocated some or all of their operations away from the area.
The Botley Road bridge has finally opened
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NETWORK RAIL
Tim Parker, 27, who works at the Botley McDonald’s, captured the prevailing mood: “They kept delaying and delaying. Everybody was getting annoyed about it, and it should not have taken that long.”
Pratik Singh, an employee at Track & Tonic Convenience Store, acknowledged the shop “suffered a bit” during the closure but expressed optimism that the reopened highway “would help”.
Shadow Transport Secretary Richard Holden said: “Oxford has spent three years stuck in a jam for an over-budget bridge that does little for the drivers and passengers who are meant to benefit from it.”
Reform UK’s treasury spokesman Robert Jenrick called the saga “a parable for broken Britain,” adding: “While the Chinese are building thousands of miles of high-speed rail, it takes us three years to build a railway bridge over a two-lane road.”
Robert Jenrick said the bridge was symbolic of ‘broken Britain’
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GB NEWSOxford West and Abingdon Lib Dem MP Layla Moran demanded a formal investigation, pointing to failures in scoping, surveying and risk management.
She said the debacle had “exposed in a nutshell the reasons why we struggle to build infrastructure in this country.”
A Network Rail spokesman said: “The delays and additional costs to this project have been caused by a series of unexpected engineering challenges, including a major water pipe above a Victorian sewer, a hidden Victorian arch beneath the railway and gas leaks discovered during excavation work.
“We fully understand people’s frustration and are sorry the road was closed for so long, but these issues had to be addressed safely before the project could be completed.
“Whilst we know the closure has been frustrating, we’re pleased Botley Road is now open again, helping people get around the city more easily and unlocking long-term benefits for Oxford’s residents, businesses and visitors.”
GB News has contacted the Department for Transport for comment.