“We cannot build more roads”: Cycling campaigners call for “bold” congestion charge to tackle car-dependency in Oxford

“The city will grind to a halt under the weight of car traffic,” the group said, urging the council to make Oxford safer for vulnerable road users
by ADWITIYA PAL
WED, JUN 11, 2025 17:24

Cycling campaigners have called on Oxfordshire County Council to be “bold” in how it tackles congestion, as the city’s traffic woes reach what they describe as a “crisis point”.

Oxford’s campaign group Cyclox said it welcomed plans for a temporary congestion charge being discussed by the council, which would see motorists
pay £5 to drive through certain roads at peak times, with exemptions for
Blue Badge holders, carers, emergency vehicles, and local businesses.

Ian Loader, Cyclox chairman, said: “The council must be bold and make the city safe for cyclists, bus users and pedestrians, and that means reducing levels of road traffic.

“Cyclox will study the proposals put forward by the council and work
closely with them to ensure that a congestion relief scheme not only
improves bus services but also encourages active and sustainable travel.

“It is vital that any funds raised by the scheme are used wholly to support improved public transport and better cycling infrastructure.”

[linked article] High Court orders Labour council to scrap “unlawful” low traffic neighbourhood as anti-LTN campaigners hail landmark ruling as “wake-up call to councils everywhere”

Thalia Carr, campaigns leader at Cyclox, added: “The May local elections delivered a council with a clear mandate to tackle decades of
car-dependency in the city and expand the transport options available to
the city’s residents.

“We cannot build more roads to magic congestion away. The problem cannot
wait until the traffic filters go in in late 2026. We need to find ways to encourage greater use of buses and active travel now.”

She warned that if congestion problems are left alone, “the city will grind to a halt under the weight of car traffic”.

The proposed charge would apply every day from 7am to 7pm on Hythe Bridge Street, St Cross Road, Thames Street and St Clement’s Street, and Monday to Saturday on Marston Ferry Road and Hollow Way. It would end when the
delayed traffic filter trial starts in 2026, after the expected reopening
of Botley Road.

Oxford Mail (link is external) reports that the council’s cabinet is due to discuss the scheme next Tuesday (June 17) and will be asked to approve a six-week public consultation, starting June 23. The scheme could be
implemented as soon as autumn 2025.

Robin Tucker, co-chair of the Coalition for Health Streets and Active
Travel (CoHSAT), said: “We at CoHSAT are glad to see the new council using their mandate and ingenuity to tackle the long-standing problem of traffic congestion in Oxford, and proposing this innovative solution.

“We're pleased that people and organisations will have six weeks to review the new proposals, and after more than a decade to think, this is the time
for anyone to suggest alternatives to fix the traffic problem.

“If the temporary congestion charge proposal does go ahead, by late 2027,
we would have a view of the effects of 'doing nothing', a congestion
charge, and experimental traffic filters, so a decision could be based on
what worked best.”

[linked article] 20mph in all urban areas, a ban on pavement parking and cycling in the national curriculum: cycling and walking groups call for
"most radical reforms to road safety since mandatory seat belts" ahead of Government’s Road Safety Strategy

While some campaigners have welcomed the congestion charge as a chance to reduce car-dependency and encourage more cycling and walking, the plans
come against a backdrop of heated debates in Oxford, particularly regarding 20mph speed limits.

According to the Oxford Bus Company, implementing the speed limits would
make bus travel “less attractive” and increase congestion. Last month, managing director Luke Marion argued that journey times for bus passengers would rise if 20mph limits were extended beyond busy areas.

Meanwhile, in January, Labour’s local leader in Oxford, Liz Brighouse,
called for a “halt” to the implementation of traffic filters in the city, saying the measures have “turned neighbours against one another”.

Thalia Carr, pointed out the May local election results, arguing that it “delivered a council with a clear mandate to tackle decades of
car-dependency in the city.” She added: “We cannot build more roads to magic congestion away… We need to find ways to encourage greater use of
buses and active travel now.”

Cyclox’s push for “bold” change also comes at a time when the future of traffic calming schemes to enable a modal shift towards public and active transport has been thrown into jeopardy following last week's High Court ruling, in which the judicial body ordered Lambeth Council in south London
to scrap an “unlawful” low traffic neighbourhood scheme.

Anti-LTN campaigners called the decision a “wake-up call” for councils, warning them to listen to residents and not impose traffic restrictions
without proper consultation.

Despite that ruling, campaigners in Oxford have argued that measures to
reduce car use and make streets safer for cycling must continue. Green councillor Emily Kerr said that initiatives like low-traffic neighbourhoods
and traffic filters are already common in European cities and needed in
Oxford to tackle car dependency.

[linked article] "Huge public health benefits to more children walking and cycling": Oxford's low-traffic neighbourhoods defended after criticism of controversial scheme's £4m cost

Emily Cherry, chief executive of the Bikeability Trust, said last month
that the Road Safety Strategy should be used to make “bold, historic
changes that protect and enshrine the rights and safety of every road
user”.

Councillor Kerr added: “The government says that road traffic collisions
cost the UK economy around £34bn per year. This is not only a huge
financial number, but also underplays the human and emotional costs of
people being maimed and killed.

“Given that LTNs can reduce pedestrian injuries by 85 per cent, and that 22,000 people live in Oxford’s LTNs, I think just £55,000 per year on their maintenance represents good value for money. Additionally, there are huge public health benefits from cleaner air and more children walking and cycling.”

<https://road.cc/content/news/oxford-cycling-campaigners-call-bold-congestion-charge-314401>

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