THE PEDESTRIANISATION of Queen Street has been thrown into doubt after transport bosses recommended the city centre road be kept open for buses despite safety concerns.

Officers had suggested a trial closure of the street once the Westgate Centre opens in October next year but county council cabinet member for transport David Nimmo Smith yesterday performed a dramatic U-turn, instead opting to recommend keeping the street open on a six-month trial basis instead.

Following pleas from the city's biggest bus operators, along with Oxford Preservation Trust, Mr Nimmo Smith to allow buses to use the road to cope with increased visitors.

But Oxford City Council's head of planning and transport Alex Hollingsworth said safety must come first.

He said: "The safety of pedestrians has to be the absolute top priority here.

"There are a number of very important factors and potential considerations but irrespective of that safety has to be at the forefront of everybody's minds.

"Clearly the county council feels there is more work to be done and they are mindful of potential negative impacts and knock-on effect of closing Queen Street."

Last week Oxford City Council - which fully back the pedestrianisation - pledged £500,000 towards a £2m scheme of improvement to make the area more pedestrian-friendly.

Council member for planning and transport Alex Hollingsworth said the council would wait for a decision and that this money would only be spent if pedestrianisation was permanent.

Phil Southall, managing director of Oxford Bus Company and Martin Sutton, managing director of Stagecoach Oxfordshire both pleaded with the council to keep Queen Street open, warning its closure would merely displace the buses and create more congestion elsewhere.

Mr Southall offered a guarantee that buses would immediately stop using the road if there was any indication of a safety risk to pedestrians once Westgate opened.

A report prepared by officers read: "A trial of leaving Queen St open is not recommended because it could result in an unsafe situation and risk the authority having to rapidly arrange an 'emergency closure' with all the disruption that goes with it."

The county council's deputy director of commercial Chris McCarthy admitted it was a 'finely balanced dilemma' and that the council could predict the £440m shopping centre's impact 'until the cow's come home' without knowing for sure.

Mr Nimmo Smith decided it would be simpler to keep it open under review rather than closing it and then having to re-open it.

Stagecoach Oxfordshire managing director Martin Sutton said: "It's absolutely the right way to go and it's the right decision.

"We have a higher number of buses in Oxford then in comparable cities and more than of all journeys in the city are made by bus.

"If you don't allow buses to use Queen Street there will only be more buses in St Aldate's and more buses turning in Speedwell Street where there is insufficient space to turn.

"There will be more pedestrians in Oxford when the Westgate opens but the majority of them will arrive by bus.

He added: "We still need a more coherent plan for transport in the city."

Oxford Preservation Trust director Debbie Dance said closing Queen Street would jeopardise the heritage of historical streets such as St Aldate's and High Street where buses would have to flock to.

She said: "We want the Westgate to succeed and it's in everybody's interests that it does.

"But if you go to St Aldate's at the moment, it's like a bus station, is that really what we should be doing to our city?"

Mr Nimmo Smith's recommendations will be decided on by the cabinet at their next meeting.