Abingdon lorry crash causes road closure for most of day
Eyewitnesses reported miles of traffic[1] queueing on the A34 northbound from before Marcham yesterday morning (Tuesday, October 3) after both northbound and southbound lanes were closed between Kennington and Abingdon following the crash.
The closures took place at around 7am and the northbound lane was reopened about an hour later, allowing traffic through very slowly.
National Highways officers and contractors assisted with traffic management and Emergency services, including Thames Valley Police, were on the scene.
The highways team confirmed the A34 open in both directions at around 12pm, with one lane left closed both ways throughout the afternoon to allow emergency barrier repairs to take place.
One eyewitness at the time said: “There is one traffic officer setting up a contraflow into one lane northbound about a mile after Abingdon.
"The outside lane is closed so everyone is having to go in the inside lane and they have basically closed the outside lane where the barrier is destroyed.
"There are two police cars on the other carriageway. It looks like the lorry has gone into the hedge. It's far from where it broke the barrier. It looks like it swung across.
"It smells like a diesel spill too.”
Other eyewitnesses sent in photos of the overturned lorry, with one driver saying: “An HGV travelling north lost control and ended up on the southside embankment.”
A diversion was put in place at the time, advising drivers to leave the A34 at the A4183 Sunningwell Interchange.
Public transport was also disrupted, with Thames Travel and Oxford[3] Bus Company tweeting about delays to their services.
At around 8.40am, Oxford Bus Company tweeted: “The closure will be in place for several hours so please expect major delays on our X1, X3 and 35 routes.”
Thames Travel also warned customers to expect major delays on its X2, X32 and ST1 services stating it didn’t know how long they would last.
Later in the day, at around 1.30pm, the bus companies were informed that the A34 had reopened in both directions and said their services were returning to their normal route.
The bus companies tweeted: “Until the services catch up and are regulated, delays are to be expected. Thank you for your patience.”
Nathan Ley, county[4] councillor for Abingdon North, posted a picture of himself on social media on his bike at around 10am, saying: “A34 closed. Gridlock through town, feeling even more vindicated about my commute choice to County Hall, Oxford.
"I'm off to Oxford for my first cabinet meeting by bike. If you don't have to use a car this morning, please don't."
This story was written by Matthew Norman[5], he joined the team in 2022 as a Facebook community reporter.
Matthew covers Bicester[6] and focuses on finding stories from diverse communities.
Get in touch with him by emailing: [email protected]
Follow him on Twitter: @OxMailMattN1