REPLACING Traffic lights with roundabouts in Frideswide Square, Oxford, would offer the best solution to congestion at the notorious traffic bottleneck, it has been concluded.

Traffic surveys by Oxfordshire County Council to establish how the square could be improved found ongoing problems with congestion could be addressed with roundabouts at the centre of a major redesign.

But the council has admitted that spending cuts could mean improvement work is not done for some time.

The junction near the railway station is viewed by many as a planning disaster, with the web of bus lanes and traffic lights clogging up the west of the city.

A survey by County Hall has established that more than three-quarters of people asked were dissatisfied with the square’s layout, saying it created a poor first impression of Oxford and was “an unpleasant place to be”. Others complained of traffic delays, a layout that was difficult to understand and about ‘indirect’ pedestrian crossings.

Ian Hudspeth, county council cabinet member for infrastructure, said: “The technical work shows the scenarios involving roundabouts and withdrawal of traffic lights best meet the aspirations expressed by local people and organisations.

“However, at this stage the council has made no decisions.”

But he warned that the Government’s determination to cut spending could put the redesign of the square back for years.

Last month, Mr Hudspeth revealed that he had made a personal appeal to Prime Minister David Cameron to allow Oxfordshire to keep £88m for road and rail improvements that were promised under Labour.

Plans to expand Oxford’s rail station, including a pedestrian bridge to link the station with a new platform, now hang in the balance, along with major ring road schemes.

Redesigning Frideswide Square was seen as a key element in the Transform Oxford scheme, launched by County Hall in 2008, to pedestrianise much of the city centre. It was also seen as central to the regeneration of the city’s West End.

Christ Church earlier presented a £100m scheme to transform the area with a mix of shops, restaurants and housing. But it was hit by the recession when its chosen developer was placed in administration.

The college has since said any plan for the area could be between five and ten years away.