Campervans and caravans have returned to Hales Meadow for the summer holidays.

Minor repairs to the ancient Abingdon Bridge require the knowledge of heritage experts to proceed and this week the cones have been extended across the full span of the bridge to give pedestrians and cyclists more room.

On Hales Meadow, over Abingdon Bridge, there were spectators at Abingdon Vale Cricket Club pavilion along with batsmen awaiting their innings.

On the other side of the pitch were the campervans and caravans.

For traffic approaching the extended cones on Abingdon Bridge there is a sign that says ‘Temporary active travel lane’.

The wider pedestrian walkway is just what was needed during the first lockdown when people were going into the road, dangerously near traffic, to avoid other pedestrians coming the other way. Most of the cyclists were still going with the cars and lorries.

Reopening the old Drayton slip road onto the A34 has sometimes been talked about as a way of reducing traffic coming into Abingdon on the Drayton Road – where traffic queues are a long running issue.

The slip road was being used by travelers for a spell at the start of the year. Since then interlocking concrete blocks have been put across the entrance and adjoining fences.

Two week ago the blocks were removed and construction traffic entered the slip way. The slipway is not being opened up, as I at first hoped, or being blocked up for good. At the A34 end the slipway has been used as an unofficial layby on the A34, and the work is to make it an official layby. The existing gates will be replaced with heavy duty gates and the interlocking concrete blocks put back.

Overnight work to resurface the double mini roundabout, at the junction of Drayton Road and Marcham Road, is two thirds done. The roundabouts themselves have been resurfaced and painted and the bottom of Spring Road has been resurfaced. The final night for work is tonight. This is the view after it was reopened this morning.

Lots of people on East and West St Helen Street, in the town centre, forgot that Monday had been a Bank Holiday and that the recycling collection was put back a day. Throughout Friday the pavements were stacked with bins and bags.