Sir – There are three important points that have got lost in much of the current debate over the Magdalen Road controlled parking zone (CPZ).

First, parking spaces in the narrow streets between the Iffley and Cowley roads of East Oxford are a limited but over-used resource.

In many streets there is not enough parking for one space per residence but due to high residential population density, commuter parking, parking for services on the Cowley Road, and spillover parking from areas with a CPZ many vehicles are competing to use these spaces.

This problem was highlighted by the county council’s 2007 report. Second, over-use and under-regulation has resulted in an undesirable and dangerous situation.

Many residents find it almost impossible to park in the area.

More significantly, cars regularly block pavements, are often parked haphazardly, and parking on corners is an everyday occurrence making it often impossible for large vehicles (including ambulances and fire engines) to get through.

The dangerousness of the parking situation was also highlighted in the 2007 report, but has become worse since then.

Third, a CPZ is not a radical step for a council to take. CPZs are used throughout the UK for regulating parking and there is no other area in Oxford so close to the centre and to a busy retail area that does not have a CPZ.

The lack of a CPZ in the area looks odd to the point of irrational, particularly given there are CPZs in roads fringing this area.

A CPZ will not magically create new parking spaces, but it will regulate parking practices to ensure they are safe, and reduce the number of vehicles which have the right to compete for a limited resource in as fair a way as possible.

Liz Fisher, Nick Barton, Giovanni Carnibella, Sally Ladbrook, Alison Roberts, East Oxford