What is being proposed?

The proposals include continuous pedestrian and cycling routes, with segregated cycle lanes and wider footpaths where possible.

They will replace the existing cycle routes, which are often shared with buses or other motorised traffic, giving both pedestrians and cyclists their own safe space.

This will enable people who live, work or travel along Woodstock Road to make more sustainable travel choices, resulting in reduced traffic, improved air quality, and safer travel. The proposed changes will also help support planned new housing in Oxford.

Bus lane changes

The proposals include changes to the bus lane along Woodstock Road – reversing the existing southbound bus lane on the eastern side of the road between the A40 and Beech Croft Road to a northbound bus lane on the western side of the road opposite the existing location.

Your views

We’d like to hear your views on active travel proposals for Oxford’s Woodstock Road including replacing a bus lane to improve bus journeys and improvements to cycling and crossing provision. You can have your say by visiting on our survey page before 11.59pm on 5 June 2024.

Further works

Alongside the bus lane changes, we are looking to deliver a package of measures to improve the quality and safety of walking and cycling routes along Woodstock Road.  We will be reviewing and identifying these measures with advice from local active travel representatives (through an ongoing co-production design approach). The measures will be intended to make walking/wheeling and cycling more attractive and support the targets in the Oxford Local Cycling and Walking Infrastructure Plan to increase cycling levels in Oxford by 50% by 2030.

Ultimately, the goal is that the works will support people who live, work or travel along Woodstock Road to make more trips using sustainable travel choices more easily and safely.  This can also help to reduce traffic, and improve air quality, in Oxford and support planned housing growth in the city.

Why we are investing here

We are committed to creating a low-traffic environment while also addressing the transport challenges that come with growth in Oxfordshire.

More than 150,000 vehicles cross Oxford’s ring road each day, with the vast majority being private vehicles and currently 75% of local air pollution in Oxford comes from traffic. Currently, every morning, vehicles across the city emit 50 tonnes of CO2.

As a major road in Oxford, Woodstock Road has been identified as a route that would benefit significantly from these improvements. By investing now and giving people options other than travelling by car, we can minimise the impact of motorised traffic as the city grows. The proposed changes along Woodstock Road will result in:

• More sustainable travel options
• Reduced congestion on roads
• Improved air quality
• Improved safety for all users and reduced accidents
• More enjoyable and improved bus journeys

The project also supports the county’s wider Transport Strategy including Connecting Oxford, and the A40 Science Transit and the A44 Corridor North Oxford Improvements projects.

How were the proposals arrived at?

The initial proposals were prepared in collaboration with representatives from key users, including walking, cycling, and neighbourhood groups, as well as bus operators and the University of Oxford.

A co-production approach was used to engage with key users at the early stages of the project. Several sessions were held between March and July 2021 to help us understand users’ priorities and create subsequent designs. This process has helped us present a detailed and informed proposal to the public for further comments.

How much will it cost?

The total budget for this project is £12.5m, secured from government funding (Growth Deal).

Detailed scheme costing and estimates will be undertaken at each stage of design with actual quotations received before construction begins to ensure the works fit within the available budget.

If you have any specific questions please contact the delivery team at woodstockroadcorridor@oxfordshire.gov.uk

Frequently asked questions

A list of questions can be found on our LetsTalk website