Eynsham’s 60 million-euro, 850-space park and ride by the A40 sits empty until summer 2028

It may be brand new and offers 850 spaces, yet not a single car is using it.

A genuine scandal is unfolding in Eynsham, near Oxford. A park and ride car park that cost 60 million euros and provides 850 spaces is currently welcoming no vehicles at all, according to Auto Plus, citing the BBC.

A finished park and ride at Eynsham, but still closed

Built close to the A40, the site has been ready for months: the bays are painted, lighting is installed, and everything appears set up to receive motorists. Despite that, its opening is not scheduled until summer 2028.

The obvious question is why the wait is so long. Work began in December 2022 and was completed in January 2024, the reports say.

What the A40 scheme was meant to achieve

The plan sounded sensible: reduce rush-hour congestion on the heavily used Witney–Oxford route by encouraging drivers to park at the site and continue their journey by bus.

The car park will stay “ghost” for at least 2 years

The facilities were also designed with care. The car park includes electric-car charging points, shelters, public toilets, cycle parking, and appropriate security arrangements. However, the project did not unfold as intended.

As Auto Plus explains, the car park was supposed to connect directly to the A40 via an access slip road and a redesigned junction. Those works were meant to be carried out alongside the main build, but “cost pressures caused by high inflation” forced local authorities to change course.

In practical terms, the car park itself was delivered on schedule, yet the road link to the A40 was not built. It is now expected to be completed in two years’ time. Until then, this unused facility has become headline news in the United Kingdom, widely viewed as an example of public money being squandered. Unfortunately, it is not an isolated case: similar situations have been reported elsewhere in Europe, including Spain and France.