This will just displace congestion and pollution, not reduce it
- Actually, a significant proportion of the motor traffic simply disappears.
- Remaining motor traffic is smoother.
One-way streets just increase road speed
- This has been found to be true where no roadspace has been reallocated.
- In our one-way system, there is only one lane for vehicle.
- This means they can only travel as fast as the slowest participant.
- City buses travelling at the speed limit will fulfill this purpose.
The “Inspector’s Report on the Torrington Place to Tavistock Place Public Inquiry” was released on May 18 and is available here.
This was tried in Stevenage/Frideswide Square and it failed
- In Stevenage, motor traffic continues to be incentivised by fast, high-capacity roads.
- Frideswide Square is isolated, and even in isolation does not conform to OLS proposals.
- By contrast, the Marston Ferry Road segregated cycle path has been instrumental in shaping Cherwell School cycling rates.
The UK town of Stevenage (pop 88,000) famously built miles of segregated cycleways in the 1960s … only to see them disused. Carlton Reid tells the story. Squint at Stevenage’s extensive 1960s protected cycleway network and you could be in the Netherlands – except for the lack of people on bikes. So why did the […]
Oxford is too hilly/chilly
- Technology does provide a solution here: electric bikes.
- Other cities with comparable or cooler climates (Oslo, Copenhagen, Groningen) have made a success of this vision.
- There’s no such thing as bad weather—just the wrong clothes!
Do people cycle in all seasons? In Copenhagen, pictured above, 75% of the city residents keep cycling through the winter months. This study of Swedish households found active-travel commuters “to be much less sensitive to weather changes than non-commuters”. There is even such a thing as a Winter Cycling Congress.
This is bad for people with mobility problems
- Low-intimidation streets benefit people with mobility problems.
- Segregated cycle paths can be used by people in wheelchairs and mobility scooters.
- There are cycle adaptations for virtually every physical disability.
Riding a bike may be easier than walking for two-thirds of disabled cyclists, but they often remain invisible to society. Many don’t realise that more than a quarter of disabled commutes in this university city are made by bike.
Bus routes would be disrupted
- Good public transport is a key part of the vision.
- We envisage shuttle buses inside Oxford connecting with transport hubs at the edge.
- Strategic bus contraflows would allow cross-city connections where necessary.
Businesses/students won’t be able to receive their deliveries
- Much more can be delivered by bicycle and smaller vehicles than at present.
- Restrictions on motor traffic in the city centre can be lifted at specified times as they are at present on Cornmarket.
- The vision includes two-way road access to business parks and industrial estates.
Did you know that Oxford is home to one of the biggest “last-mile” cargo-bike logistics operations in the UK? Pedal & Post has 10 cargo-bikes covering the entirety of the city every day.
Emergency vehicles would be slowed down
- There is no evidence that liveable streets cause longer emergency response times.
- To the extent that they reduce congestion, they would be expected to reduce emergency response times.
- Segregated cycle lanes, like pavements, can be occupied by cars in order to clear a path for emergency vehicles—or by emergency vehicles themselves.
- The London Fire Brigade reports no sustained degradation in attendance time where comparable infrastructure changes have been introduced.
- The OLS vision for Oxfordshire ensures good ambulance access to the John Radcliffe hospital.
London’s Cycle Superhighways (CSHs) offer one example of a reallocation of road space between cycles and cars. The graphs above and below indicate the impact on journey times for motorised traffic, as of November 2017. These are from Transport for London. Journey times are certainly up. But for the first time, they are actually falling. […]
This is bad for motorists
- Traffic evaporation means people who need to drive have smoother-flowing, more predictable lanes.
- The Netherlands has the highest driver satisfaction in the world and the most segregated cycle infrastructure of any country.
Car space on Dronning Louises Bridge in Copenhagen was reduced to increase space for cycling, pedestrians, and buses. The result was an increase in cycling by 60%, walking by 165%, bus use by 5%, and increase from 81,000 to 97,000 using the bridge. Source.
London’s Cycle Superhighways (CSHs) offer one example of a reallocation of road space between cycles and cars. The graphs above and below indicate the impact on journey times for motorised traffic, as of November 2017. These are from Transport for London. Journey times are certainly up. But for the first time, they are actually falling. […]
This is bad for businesses/shopkeepers/stores/traders
- Higher pedestrianisation and cycle access is associated with higher trade
- Traders’ groups that initially oppose such plans are often the first to sing their benefits after the fact.
Politicians won’t accept it — it would be suicidal
- There is already evidence of the plan’s advantages for all road users, residents, and businesses.
- There is already evidence of support among the electorate.
- Studies suggest that expectation management, good monitoring of key indicators and speedy availability of facts, and good communication are key to ensuring that benefits are recognized.
- In other cities, opposition has decreased substantially after the transition.
Dronning Street in Copenhagen
Car space on Dronning Louises Bridge in Copenhagen was reduced to increase space for cycling, pedestrians, and buses. The result was an increase in cycling by 60%, walking by 165%, bus use by 5%, and increase from 81,000 to 97,000 using the bridge. Source.
Motorised traffic journey times after space-reduction
London’s Cycle Superhighways (CSHs) offer one example of a reallocation of road space between cycles and cars. The graphs above and below indicate the impact on journey times for motorised traffic, as of November 2017. These are from Transport for London. Journey times are certainly up. But for the first time, they are actually falling. […]