Hopes for £500,000 improvements to Abingdon’s roads have been dashed by Oxfordshire County Council, which has said funding ring-fenced for the town is no longer available.

Ian Hudspeth, the county council’s Cabinet member for transport, previously promised £500,000 saved on the last part of the Abingdon Integrated Traffic Strategy (abits) would go towards an alternative town scheme.

But last Monday, at an abits working group meeting, Mr Hudspeth revealed that the money had not been put in the county council’s 2009/2010 budget.

He said: “A lot of the suggestions coming forward were suggestions that did not meet the criteria of the local transport plan objectives.

“I stand by my commitment at the last meeting but I think it’s very important that we don’t just spend money because it’s available.”

However, he added that if a suitable scheme was found, the money could still be spent in Abingdon in the future.

He denied that the money had been spent elsewhere, but said that it had just not been included in the next budget.

At an abits meeting in July, county council officers told members that the £500,000 scheme to put in a jet stream at the Colwell Drive roundabout on Marcham Road was no longer feasible because of safety problems.

However, Mr Hudspeth assured members that the money made available for this project would still be used in Abingdon in its 2009/ 2010 budget.

Julie Mayhew-Archer, who represented the town council at the meeting, said that she had put 20 suggestions forward on behalf of the council and had received no feedback prior to the meeting.

She said: “It’s very frustrating. I am the sole council representative of the 21 elected members. If effectively we are having the rug pulled from under our feet, then to have the agenda through just days before is not good.

“We put the suggestions in months ago and we’ve had no feedback from the county.”

Among the schemes put forward by the town council was to widen Drayton Road, which is a pinch point for south Abingdon.

It also suggested improving cycle links and creating better signs to direct visitors to car parks.

After the meeting, district councillor Richard Webber said: “The funding cut was only sent to me and my colleagues on Friday, buried on page six of a report and no figure was given in the report.

“Together with my colleagues I protested about this at our meeting but I find it difficult to accept vague promises that this money will be committed to Abingdon for unforeseen schemes with unknown costs at some point in the future.”

abingdon@oxfordmail.co.uk