Cycling in Oxford is “still not safe enough” and “there is still some way to go”, a councillor has said after the council agreed new safety measures for construction vehicles.
Oxford City Council signed up to the Construction Logistics and Community Safety Standard in last Wednesday's cabinet meeting.
This will require developers of large construction sites to plan the movement of their HGVs to keep them away from busy or high risk areas such as school gates during drop off times.
READ MORE: Oxford: New plans to reduce number of crashes with HGVs
Last Friday, April 21, the county councillor Trish Elphinstone was knocked off her bike and suffered a bloody facial wound as she cycled to a road safety meeting.
Ms Elphinstone, who was left with her head “matted with blood”, said the crash was “ironic” given that she was on her way to discuss road safety improvements.
Ms Elphinstone has called the council’s decision to sign up to this safety standard as “welcome news to pedestrians and cyclists; especially as recent deaths are linked to HGVs”.
READ MORE: Train delays expected between Didcot Parkway and Swindon
However, speaking on behalf of Cyclox and leading the campaign on Vision Zero, Jamie Clark said he was concerned the council has only committed to “encouraging larger developments to include the more rigorous CLOCS Standard in their construction logistic plan”.
He explained: “It is great the city council has embraced CLOCS but we are very worried that their commitment is weak in the way it has been worded.
“The University of Oxford has made this scheme compulsory for contractors, whereas the city council appears to be making it voluntary and only for larger developments.
“There are major loopholes that we are very worried about.”
READ MORE: Diane Abbott 'condemned' by Oxford MP after Labour suspension
Mr Clark said it was a “first step to get rid of these killer vehicles” but argued it needs to be enforced on “construction sites in the city and “be mandatory”.
He added: “Their commitment also doesn’t talk about delivery vehicles.
“There is a lot more to be done.”
Oxford City Councillor and cabinet member for planning and housing delivery Alex Hollingsworth said: “Pedestrians and cyclists have the right to feel safe when they travel around Oxford.
“Becoming a CLOCS champion will drive up standards by requiring larger developers to consider how their HGVs are moving around Oxford, and improve the safety standards of their vehicles.
“We hope this decision will encourage other regulators, developers and fleet operators around Oxfordshire to become CLOCS champions, so that together we can ensure no cyclists or pedestrians are killed or injured by construction vehicles on our roads.”
READ MORE: Oxford traffic filters: Politicians blast council for decision
Since 2020, four cyclists have been killed in collisions with HGVs in Oxford.
CLOCS’ 2018 report revealed that HGVs were involved with 20 per cent of pedestrian fatalities and 78 per cent of cyclist fatalities.
Last year, on March 1 an uninsured lorry driver, Robert Whiting, killed Oxford University student and cyclist Dr Ling Felce at The Plain roundabout.
Mr Whiting was later jailed for eight years.
Green Party and Oxford City councillor Emily Kerr said Ms Elphinstone’s recent accident “proves we’ve still got some way to go before everyone who can cycle feels safe to do so; especially older, younger, and beginner cyclists”.
She added: “Oxford’s getting safer for cyclists and we are seeing more people switch to cycling- but it’s still not safe enough”.
Ms Kerr said it was known that HGVs only account for a “small proportion of traffic, but they cause a majority of cyclist fatalities.”
Ms Kerr said she hopes the new safety standards will encourage “good construction firms” who “properly plan HGV trips and use safer vehicles” to “win more contracts”.
In 2018, over 5,500 pedestrians, cyclists and motorcyclists were injured in collisions with HGVs in Britain.
The city council has said this standard will support Oxfordshire County Council’s ‘Vision Zero’ commitment which aims to eliminate deaths and serious injuries from road traffic collisions in Oxfordshire by 2050.
The city council’s housing company, OX Place, will also request that its main contractors sign up to the CLOCS Standard.
An Oxford City Council spokeman said: “Oxford City Council is the planning authority for Oxford; the University of Oxford is not.
“Where we are the contractor on an individual development, we will also make the CLOCS Standard compulsory.
"But where we are the planning authority, and making decisions about a third party’s planning application, different legal powers apply.
“In that case, the city council will continue to require that all large developments have a Construction Traffic Management Plan, but now will be aiming to include the CLOCS Standard as part of that planning condition.
“That has to be done with the agreement of the planning applicant, but we believe, based on current experience with Construction Traffic Management Plans, that applicants and contractors will be more than happy to sign up.
“Full details of how the CLOCS Standard will impact the planning applications and construction vehicles of large developments will be drawn up by the city council over the coming months.
"We are happy to discuss these matters with Cyclox.”
Help support trusted local news
Sign up for a digital subscription now: oxfordmail.co.uk/subscribe
As a digital subscriber you will get:
- Unlimited access to the Oxford Mail website
- Advert-light access
- Reader rewards
- Full access to our app
About the author
To sign up to Ed's weekly Politics newsletter, click here: https://www.oxfordmail.co.uk/newsletters/
Newsletters On The Oxford Mail
Newsletters On The Oxford Mail
Ed specialises in writing political stories for the Oxford Mail and The Oxford Times.
He joined in the team in February 2023, after completing a History undergraduate degree at the University of York and studying for his NCTJ diploma in London.
Ed’s weekly politics newsletter is released every Saturday morning.
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