BY the end of summer a fountain will be flowing again in Frogmoor when work is finished transforming the area.

The fact that there's going to be a new fountain is largely thanks to the efforts of Midweek readers, who supported the campaign by editor Steve Cohen. But it's taken a long time he started campaigning in 1993.

Frogmoor has had two previous fountains. The first was a traditional Victorian one where youngsters could dangle their legs in the water. That was removed in the Second World War and the metal used for armaments.

People didn't like the second. It appears to have been more like a large drinking fountain, described by Steve as a cross between a giant birdbath and an ashtray.

He said the only danger people faced of getting wet was from Special Brew cans discarded by the drunks who congregated in the square.

That edifice disappeared and Wycombe District Council held a contest to design a new one. Altogether the council is putting £200,000 into improving the Frogmoor environment for shoppers and pedestrians, while the county council is paying £800,000 for road and traffic improvements.

Work started on the traffic improvements yesterday. The idea is to improve the bus service, minimise through traffic and create a pedestrian precinct where people can sit in pavement cafes and enjoy the sun.

The downside is the fact that there are at least 14 weeks of trouble ahead in Frogmoor, Oxford Road and Church Street, while it all gets done and people will not be able to catch buses at their usual stops.

"We have to create mayhem first," said Raj Rajkumar, Buckinghamshire County Council's team leader for highways projects. "But we are trying to minimise the disturbance and it's for everyone's benefit."

Paul Goodwin, county public transport officer, said changing the bus stops had been done successfully before in the town centre by the bus company.

"It's exactly the same as when we did the bollards," he said.

The work by mainly Ringway Highway Services of Gloucester is being done in three phases.

Phase One takes eight weeks and involves closing Oxford Street, with traffic having to go via Frogmoor.

The carriageway in Oxford Street is being narrowed and the footway widened and repaved. There will be two new bus shelters and an extra bus stop on the south side.

Phase Two, changing the road in Frogmoor, will take six weeks. At present traffic goes up one side and down the other. In future it will be two way on the west side, with the east side catching the afternoon sun pedestrianised.

This will enable people to walk through from the town centre without having to cross the road.

As work is carried out the western carriageway, taking traffic out of town, will be closed, so cars will have to go via Oxford Street. Incoming traffic will not be affected.

The new carriageway will be further to the east of the existing one to make turning from Oxford Street easier. And this means 13 maple trees planted about 20 years ago will have to come down

When Phase three starts Oxford Street and Frogmoor Road will be finished and traffic, including buses should be running normally.

The pedestrianisation work will take a further six weeks, putting in the fountain, street furniture, cycle racks, bollards, brackets for Christmas lights and uplighters.

In the autumn seven flowering pear trees will be planted.