BICESTER Village bosses say the area is returning to normal after the Boxing Day scramble.

The retail park saw around 40,000 shoppers swarm on to the site on Thursday as people travelled in search of a bargain.

There were still queues yesterday to get into the park.

But although motorists were having to wait for up to 20 minutes at times, the traffic levels were less intense than on the previous day.

Some residents have raised concerns that the motorists clog up the roads and park in places they should not.

But Bicester Village says this year it took extra measures to try to limit problems – including longer opening hours and more parking spaces.

Speaking to the Oxford Mail yesterday, community relations director Miranda Markham said: “Yesterday [on Boxing Day] we were very busy. Today [December 27] was a much quieter start. It was not quite as busy as yesterday – more and more like a normal trading day.”

She said this year’s trade had been similar to last year’s levels.

“We were tracking what we were doing last year. We were on par. The weather was having an impact today.”