PEOPLE in Wantage fear plans to change the road system in the town centre will “kill the town”.

They fear it could lead to the same sort of traffic congestion experienced in Abingdon under its transport scheme.

Wantage Town Council has drawn up plans to introduce a two-way vehicle flow, which would loop to the south of the Market Place, and to move the bus stops out of the town centre.

However, residents and traders are concerned it will lead to the same problems as the £3.1m Abingdon Integrated Transport Strategy introduced in 2006.

The Abingdon scheme, which aimed to improve air quality and make the town centre a more pleasant environment for shoppers, led to frequent traffic congestion.

At the moment, Wantage traffic goes one way around the Market Place in a clockwise direction, but under the proposals would switch to two-way on the southern side of the square, linking into Mill Street, Wallingford Street and Newbury Street.

The northern half of the square would be pedestrianised. The bus stops would be moved to Seesen Way during the day and then back to Market Place at night.

Graham Nash, a property owner of Stirlings Road, said: “The Abingdon scheme has killed the town. It has driven a lot of people to shop elsewhere.

“The situation in Wantage Market Place is bad enough for the traders as it is.”

Architects drew up two concepts, A and B, as part of a scheme to redevelop Wantage Market Place.

Concept A, which was favoured during a consultation in May, included lowering the traffic speed limit from 30 to 20mph, seven pedestrian crossings, six parking areas, the two-way traffic flow, and moving the waiting zones from the Market Place to Seesen Way during the day.

The revamp, costing up to £1m, could be finished by the end of 2012.

Mr Nash said moving the buses would not be fair on residents in Stirlings Road, which runs parallel to Seesen Way. He has written to the town touncil urging it to come up with a scheme which suits everyone.

Mayor Patrick O’Leary admitted that concerns about traffic implications had been raised and said: “We will put pinch-points in on a temporary basis to see how the traffic would be affected before anything goes ahead.”

Andy Anderson, owner of Stuarts Taxis, said: “Moving the buses out of the town will kill it. It would be ridiculous for the elderly.”

Phillip Reeder, owner of Grove Cabs, said: “The traffic queues are bad enough at 8am. If you make it two-way, you will create a bottleneck, which is basically what’s happened in Abingdon.”

An Oxfordshire County Council spokesman said: “We are at the very early stages of discussions with Wantage Town Council.”