Issue - meetings

Cabinet Received the following Petitions and Public Address:

Petition

Mr Jamie Hartzell regarding the Closure of Walton Street

Item 6

Councillor Glynis Phillips, Shadow Cabinet Member for Finance

Councillor Liz Brighouse, Chair of Performance Scrutiny Committee 

Item 10

Councillor Liz Brighouse, Chair of Performance Scrutiny Committee 

Item 11

Sushila Dhall, Chair of Oxford Pedestrians Association

Ms Alison Hill, Chair of Cyclox the Cycle Campaign for Oxford

Mr Robin Tucker, Oxfordshire Cycle Network

Councillor Liz Brighouse, speaking as Local Member

Councillor John Howson, speaking as Local Member

Councillor Susanna Pressel, speaking as Local Member

Councillor Paul Buckley, speaking as Local Member

Cabinet Received the following Petitions and Public Address:

Petitions

Mr Jamie Hartzell, local resident of Kingston Road presented a Petition of some 650 signatures calling on the council to keep the south end of Walton Street closed to traffic, on the basis that the majority of local residents wanted the closure to reman; it had brought huge benefits including: through traffic being eliminated, an improvement in air quality, and the overall street scape was now safer and far more pleasant for cyclists and pedestrians.

Mr Richard Brown, local resident presented a petition of some 350 signatures requesting a review of the safety of the road running through the village of Middle Barton.

Councillor Constance, Cabinet Member for Environment thanked the petitioners for their petitions.

Public Address

Sushila Dhall addressing the Cabinet in her role as Chair of the Oxford Pedestrian Association explained that despite successive County documents purporting to put pedestrians and other vulnerable road users at the centre of road and transport planning, the experience of walking from Oxford rail station to the city centre, and throughout many of Oxford's most heavily used pavements was that pedestrians were kept to narrow, neglected margins; were highly over-crowded; held up at road crossings; that pavements were dirty and often obstructed or in bad shape. Pedestrians were unable to see the historic buildings as were crammed between walls and metal vehicles, even on wide historic streets like St Giles, you could not hear birds for the roar of engines. The air stank. People could not breathe deeply or properly. New schmes included the pavements being narrowed to 1.5m, the County's minimum, which was not wide enough for a wheelchair user to pass a double buggy, or for two couples to walk past one another.

The Pedestrian Association welcomed Connecting Oxford as a radical vision, where Oxford could become a beautiful city, like Bath, where the public realm is celebrated and the historic buildings can be properly seen in their magnificence, and where independent shops were not closing like in Oxford, but thriving;  where one day people may have air they can breathe, roads they can cross; see the trees and hear the birds on St Giles; and have more public space, and walk, gaze, and breathe in a kind of ordinary joy.

Councillor Constance, Cabinet Member for Environment thanked Ms Sushila Dhall for her support.

Item 6

Councillor Glynis Phillips, Shadow Cabinet Member for Finance

Councillor Liz Brighouse, Chair of Performance Scrutiny Committee 

Item 10

Councillor Liz Brighouse, Chair of Performance Scrutiny Committee 

Item 11

Sushila Dhall, Chair of Oxford Pedestrians Association

Ms Alison Hill, Chair of Cyclox the Cycle Campaign for Oxford

Mr Robin Tucker, Oxfordshire Cycle Network

Councillor Liz Brighouse, speaking as Local Member

Councillor John Howson, speaking as Local Member

Councillor Susanna Pressel, speaking as Local Member

Councillor Paul Buckley, speaking as Local Member

(Addresses are recorded at the relevant item)