New £10m river bridge approved for second time

The bridge will link Oxpens (on the right) to Osney Mead

A new £10m bridge for cyclists and pedestrians will be built over the River Thames after it was approved for a second time.

Oxford City Council gave the Oxpens River Bridge permission last month but 16 councillors said they wanted the decision reviewed.

They said they agreed with campaigners' concerns about the impact of the bridge on Grandpont Nature Park.

The council's planning review committee approved it again on Thursday.

The authority said the bridge will be a "vital link" between Oxpens and Osney Mead.

Hundreds of new homes are planned for both sites.

Oxford City Council and Nuffield College are joint partners in a project to transform the Oxpens site.

They have said the development could bring up to 3,000 new jobs and 300 new homes.

Opponents said they worried the nature park would be damaged by the bridge. Preparatory work has already taken place.

The nature park was created on the site of the city's former gasworks in the mid-1980s.