Decision details

With the consent of Council, Councillor Johnson moved an alteration to her motion at the suggestion of Councillor Gray as shown below in bold italics/strikethrough:

“Oxfordshire’s growing population includes increasing numbers of both very young people and those of retirement age. Both groups are key users of public transport and especially buses. Public transport has proven environmental benefits in supporting the county’s move towards a low-carbon future.

The Council calls on Cabinet to work towards:

·        a set of principles whereby every resident has access to daily public transport. Not only would this help promote the development of communities, integrate society and allow both young and old to reside anywhere in the county, it would also be in line with the Local Transport Plan whereby “accessible bus connections will enable disabled people, the elderly and those unable to drive to travel more.”

·         creating a spider-web of bus networks within the county, with key hubs linking the strands. These hubs, serving the rural villages, would be intrinsic to connecting our towns and Oxford city. The buses would range in sizes, from minivans to full-scale buses, depending on demand.

 This Council instructs asks Cabinet to write to bus companies encouraging them to use fares from high-use runs to subsidise those of less use within the  a hub network in which all bus services should be frequent and reliable. As franchises come to an end, tenders should be sought from companies to run inclusive networks, with profit from high-use routes subsidising low-use. Differing operating models such as Co-operative, mutual and social enterprise models should be encouraged in providing these services with new technological innovations, for example app-based hail-n-ride, can be part of the solution.”

The Motion as amended was carried unanimously.