One of the most important topics in our area are the plans to change London Road. The County Council has now produced their response to the consultation, and what I’ll say first of all is that the consultation has been much better than previous ones. The proposal is to continue with the scheme with some small changes — for instance, it has been suggested that the Old High Street pavement does not need to be extended. But, other features, like getting rid of the subway, remain. As we have continually said, instead of replacing the underpass with a crossing, as the County proposes and which would please some pedestrians but infuriate others, what would be best is to have both a crossing and a subway in this major shopping area.

As reported in The Oxford Times, we are also calling for the County to step back and review what went wrong with Phase I of the scheme before giving the green light to another long period of disruption. I hope to be allowed to address the Committee to speak up for residents’ concerns.

The County’s report is available at on-line. Annex 5, in particular, is the response to the consultation. If you have any comments, do drop us a line.