Essential repair work to a riverbank means two sections of Oxford Thames towpath will be closed.

Oxfordshire County Council has announced work to fix the eroding riverbank will begin on Monday.

The work will be completed in two stages, with the first closing the towpath between the Sir Geoffrey Arthur building and Marlborough Road on the Grandpont side of the riverbank.

The opposite bank on the City/Friars Wharf side and the Gasworks Pipe footbridge will be unaffected.

Once this work is completed, a second closure between Folly Bridge south and Donnington Bridge will start in late October.

Councillor Andrew Gant said the work was part of the authority’s “commitment to invest in the county’s blue-green infrastructure and it will safeguard this towpath for many years to come”.

He added: “We realise how popular this towpath is but the safety of users and workers is our priority and so we ask people to be patient and observe the closure.”

The council confirmed there will be signs for diversion routes as well as warnings for towpath width reductions in place while the work is ongoing.

Work to restore damaged stretches of the towpath will involve using machinery and extensive reconstruction.

A statement from the authority said it hoped the towpath would be full reopened by February 2025, but warned this date may change depending on weather conditions.