Square shape set to change (From Oxford Mail)

Square shape set to change

7:00am Thursday 18th March 2010 in

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A £2M redesign of one of the Oxford’s worst traffic bottlenecks is being drawn up by transport planners.

Highways officers at the county council are to ask the public their views on how they think the road layout in Frideswide Square outside the railway station could be reshaped.

The current design was created following the completion of the Oxford Transport Strategy in 1999, but traffic has never flowed freely.

Traffic entering the city centre is often forced to queue along Botley Road and other approach roads.

Council leaders want to come up with a design which will help traffic flow more smoothly.

Ian Hudspeth, the cabinet member for growth and infrastructure, said removing all the traffic lights and installing a roundabout at each end of the square was one possibility.

The work will be carried out as part of the council’s Transform Oxford programme, which aims to pedestrianise more of the city centre, including Queen Street.

Mr Hudspeth said: “We want to create a proper welcome for people arriving at the railway station – at the moment they’re faced with a clutter of signs and traffic lights.

“We want to create a clear walk for them through to the city centre, but we need to devise something that will satisfy pedestrians, bus users, car users and cyclists.

“It’s possible the scheme could involve removing the traffic lights and having a roundabout at each end, rather than a large gyratory at the end of the square, but we haven’t made up our minds yet and we want to hear what the public has to say.

“If we remove all the traffic lights, we need to ensure the safety of pedestrians. If we redesign the square, it may mean fewer crossings for pedestrians.

“Traffic comes from the west and the north and gets stuck in Frideswide Square. It’s clearly a key junction which isn’t working to its best capacity.”

Mr Hudspeth said initial consultation with key organisations would take place this spring, with a further round of public consultation in the summer, before a final decision on the revised design was made by the end of the year.

He added that he hoped a new platform at the railway station, alongside the Becket Street car park, would be built next year, with work on the square taking place in 2012.

Mr Hudspeth added: “Two million pounds would pay for the pure transport side of the scheme, but we might be able to attract additional funding to make it top quality, with environmental enhancements.”

Graham Jones, a spokesman for traders’ group Rescue Oxford, said: “We suggested the two roundabouts scheme to the council four years ago, because it takes far too long for traffic to get through.

“Congestion in the square has been a nonsense for far too long and certainly needs addressing.”

Corinne Grimley Evans, of Oxford Pedestrians’ Association, welcomed the proposed rethink.

She said: “It’s not an easy square for pedestrians to cross.

“We look forward to an improved design.

“The association will play a full part in the consultation process.”

affrench@oxfordmail.co.uk

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