A hole – described by one passer-by as ‘the size of a plate’ — led to the partial closure of the top of Bridge Street on Saturday.

Temporary traffic lights were installed on both Stert Street and Bridge Street to manage the resulting single-lane traffic, causing delays. A yellow board was placed over the hole, with barriers blocking access to both the pavement and the affected section of road.

Another passer-by was baffled that such a small hole could cause so much disruption. ‘Sinkhole? That’s a joke!’ said someone else.

Workmen from Oxfordshire County Council were on site today, Tuesday. They have excavated a larger section to investigate the cause of the subsidence and covered the hole again — at least for now.

Preparatory work has been underway for the past couple of weeks before the construction of new south-facing slip roads onto the A34 at Lodge Hill. These works began in mid-May and are expected to continue for approximately eight weeks.

Vegetation has been cleared, including trees, near the private access road to Egertons.

A temporary builder’s compound is also being set up off the private access road to Egertons.

Utility diversions are also happening.

The main construction is likely to start in late summer 2025 and continue until winter 2026.

Work has recommenced — following a delay — on the installation of sewers for the new North Abingdon housing developments. This work is expected to be completed by the end of September 2025. Traffic lights are in place at the top of Oxford Road, with other work near the Oxford Road roundabout.

The road to St Helen’s Wharf is closed again, and this time, there’s a cage surrounding the work area. Unlike the emergency gas repair last week this closure has come with prior notice. Thames Water expect to be finished by 14th March.

Trade appeared slower than usual at the Monday Market, with some of the stall holders packing up early. It’s not clear whether this was due to the road closure or the damp weather.

Here’s a peaceful St Helen’s Wharf – free of traffic.

As of March 5th 2025, St Helen’s Wharf in Abingdon is closed to vehicles due to essential gas network maintenance conducted by SGN (Scotia Gas Networks). The road closure commenced on the evening of March 4th. The work order XW060W121248377-01118-01 on https://one.network/ says it is scheduled between March 5th at 18:44 and until March 13 at 23:59. There is no indication how long the work will actually last.

Signs direct foot traffic through St Helen’s Churchyard.

There was also an upcoming road closure planned by Thames Water for St Helen’s Wharf. The Town Council web site https://www.abingdon.gov.uk/services/transport-and-parking/road-closure confirms this. It says Temporary Road Closure – St Helen’s Wharf – for Morrison Water Services – from 10 March 2025 up to and including 14 March 2025. This is a 24 hour road closure.