Critics say that a plan to cut parking charges is an admission that the controversial Oxford Transport Strategy has failed, writes Nick Evans.

They say many drivers now prefer to travel to Cheltenham, Milton Keynes or Swindon to shop, rather than pay the heavy charges in Oxford's car parks.

A survey, carried out by the city council in the run-up to Christmas last year, showed that only a third of spaces in the three main car parks in the city Westgate, Worcester Street and Gloucester Green were in use. Now, councillors are being asked to consider plans for a parking discount for shoppers to encourage them back to the city.

A working party has discussed ideas to reduce parking rates to 2.50 for either three or four hours. At the moment, the fee for up to three hours is 4 and for up to four hours, 5. Julian Blackwell, chairman of pressure group Rescue Oxford (ROX), welcomed the proposals. He said: "This is a small step for reality and will be welcomed by shoppers and retailers alike. This is very gratifying for us as it has taken a lot of hard work, but the campaign against the Oxford Transport Strategy will go on.

"This move is an admission of what we have been telling the city council all along, that shoppers are keeping away from Oxford."

Although the numbers of motorists using the city centre car parks has dropped, bus usage has increased since the introduction of the OTS in June last year. Oxford bus companies claim a reduction in parking fees would cost them 50,000 per year and tip the balance back towards drivers and away from public transport.

City councillor Mike Woodin (Green) said the proposals went against the spirit of OTS and would increase the amount of traffic in the city.

However, manager of the Westgate Shopping Centre, Derek Hatton, said many retailers had reported a fall in the number of shoppers in the city centre since the introduction of the OTS, and said a main reason was high parking fees. The proposals will be considered by the council's highways and traffic committee on July 17.