ALL of Oxford’s park-and-rides are now being run by the city council in a new arrangement designed to benefit passengers.
On Sunday the council took over the operational management – through its trading arm Oxford Direct Services - of Oxfordshire County Council’s Thornhill and Oxford Parkway park-and-ride sites.
But revenue from Thornhill and Oxford Parkway will still go to the county council.
Previously the city council ran three park-and-rides - Redbridge, Seacourt and Pear Tree while the county council was responsible for running Thornhill and Oxford Parkway.
READ AGAIN: Two killed tragic plane crash after aircraft nosedived
Yvonne Constance, the county council’s cabinet member for environment, said: “Traffic, congestion and parking are big issues for Oxford.
“By working together with the city council we believe we can provide a better service for users and attract more people to the park and ride sites.
“There are also savings and efficiencies for the county council, which will allow us to continue to focus on reducing congestion and improving air quality in the thriving city of Oxford and beyond.
“We will continue to focus on the park-and-rides and seek improvements wherever possible.”
All five sites have ticket machines supplied by the same manufacturer for paying on the day.
But there is no single ticketing arrangement like those operating in other cities.
READ MORE: Frankie & Benny's restaurants could close
As a result drivers have to pay twice - once to park and again for a bus ticket.
The cashless system RingGo was also introduced in August to all the park-and-rides to offer more ways of payment to the users.
Oxford Direct Service’s Streetscene team is now responsible for cleaning the public buildings and will do so twice a day. In addition, the park-and-rides will be litter-picked three times a week.
Earlier this year the county council introduced new lower season ticket prices at Thornhill and Oxford Parkway, and the new tickets are now valid at all park-and-rides.
READ MORE: St Giles' Fair diversion could delay the traffic
Alex Hollingsworth, the city council’s cabinet member for sustainable transport, said: “Bringing all Oxford’s park and rides together under single management means that the service will be easier for customers to use and more efficient for the councils to run.
"Season tickets will now work on every site, meaning that users can pick whatever car park suits them best, making it even easier and more convenient to use the park and rides instead of driving into the city.”
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules hereLast Updated:
Report this comment Cancel