Category: travel

SOUTH Oxfordshire District Council is to carry out a public consultation later this year on potential changes to parking in the district. 

The council will ask people to comment on a number of options which will form its new parking order and determine how it operates its car parks across the district.

Options that people will be able to have their say on include:

• Standardising the charging hours across the district so that all areas are treated equally;
• Introducing Sunday parking fees to help ensure spaces are available for people wishing to visit local shops and cafes;
• A full review of how permits work to ensure they are allocated appropriately, depending on the size and location of the car park;
• Offering discounted permits for users of electric vehicles;
• Introducing limited waiting to address parking issues in the Chinnor.

People’s comments will be considered as part of a formal consultation process with statutory organisations such as the highways authority, police, town and parish councils.  The council will look at all comments before finalising and introducing the new arrangements in 2021.

MORE INFORMATION on the SODC website – LINK HERE

 

SOUTH Oxfordshire’s Green councillors say they have been keeping a close eye on air quality during the lockdown, and that they welcome the recent announcement by the District Council of measurements showing a marked reduction in Nitrogen Dioxide emissions in the district’s towns compared to the same period last year. 

Last month, Green Councillor and District Cycle Champion, Sam Casey-Rerhaye, wrote to Oxfordshire County Council to ask their Highways Cabinet to look at how they could introduce temporary measures that increase space for pedestrians and cyclists during lockdown. 

“So far,” said Oxfordshire County Cllr, Pete Sudbury, “ all that has been forthcoming is a promise to maintain existing cycle routes, something which ought to happen routinely. Cllr Sudbury told Thamenews.net: “Poor air quality kills tens of thousands of people a year in the UK. One of the few benefits of the Covid crisis is that it tells us unequivocally that traffic is a major cause of the air quality problems in Wallingford and other Oxfordshire towns. 

“We need to seize this opportunity to reduce through traffic in our town centres. The County Council is getting £2.5m of government funding aimed at promoting safe social distancing in towns, walking, cycling and (especially after Covid) public transport. I am urging them to be much more creative in using it to support suggestions from local people that will make our town centres safer and healthier.”

FOLLOWING  the Prime Minister’s announcement on March 23, regarding travel restrictions, South Oxfordshire District Council has suspended all parking charges with immediate effect – this applies to all district council car parks including that behind the Co-op in Thame and the Cattle Market car park. 

South and Vale have taken this action to support key workers and those who need to shop for essential food or medical supplies during the Coronavirus pandemic.

All charges are suspended until June 1, and during this time you do not have to display a ticket.  Any outstanding car park permits, recently expired or due to expire, will also be honoured until that date – permit holders therefore do not need to take any action before then.

Cllr David Rouane, Cabinet Member for Housing and Environment at South Oxfordshire District Council, said: “This measure is designed to support those who are playing a vital role as we tackle the Coronavirus crisis and assist those who need to run essential errands.  If you are not a key worker or are not in need of essential supplies, then you must follow the government guidance and stay at home.”

A future off-road walking and cycling link between Thame and Haddenham has won overwhelming support from local residents and community groups.

An online survey, which drew more than 2,000 responses, showed 94% of respondents would use an off-road walking and cycling route if one was introduced between Thame and Haddenham and Thame Parkway railway station.

Buckinghamshire County Council, Oxfordshire County Council and Sustrans are currently investigating the feasibility and support for such a route between Thame and Haddenham, and the survey will feed into that study.

The survey found that 82% of respondents said they currently travel between the station and Thame by car, van or motorcycle, while 5% said they cycle and 2% said they walk. Because of land-owner and Rights of Way issues around a cross-country ‘Greenway’, a route running alongside the A418 Aylesbury Road, on the other side of the hedge is being investigated and discussions with land-owners is on-going.

The A418 currently acts as a major barrier to safe opportunities for walking and cycling between Haddenham and Thame. The delivery of an off-road walking and cycling route would reduce congestion on a heavily used part of the transport network by substantially increasing the potential for sustainable travel along this corridor. The route would also enable connections to the wider network of existing and proposed walking and cycling routes. 

Mark Shaw, Buckinghamshire County Council Deputy Leader and Transport Cabinet Member, said: “We canvassed local opinion because we wanted to know how people currently travel, and to assess whether it would be beneficial to pursue providing an off-road walking and cycling route. These are early days, but the results are encouraging.” 

Yvonne Constance, Oxfordshire County Council Cabinet Member Environment, which includes transport, said: “The survey results shows that there is a real appetite for the scheme and that residents are keen for a more sustainable way to travel between Thame and Haddenham. The results have been analysed by officers at Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire and will now be used in progressing the scheme to the next stages. These are early stages for this scheme, but the survey uptake and results are encouraging.”

Such a route between Thame and Haddenham is a long-standing and prime objective of the Thame Neighbourhood Plan. But discussions having been on-going long before the TNP publication, since before 2008. (See LINK)

A summary of the survey results can be found at: https://www.buckscc.gov.uk/services/transport-and-roads/cycling-and-walking/new-walking-and-cycling-routes/haddenham-and-thame-greenway Money for the scheme would come from the Housing and Growth Deal fund, and Section 106 funding.

BCC/OCC External Stakeholder Update (February 2020):

Haddenham and Thame Greenway – Scheme Update (February 2020)

Buckinghamshire County Council, Oxfordshire County Council and Sustrans are investigating an aspirational off-road walking and cycling route between Haddenham and Thame Parkway Station and Thame, referred to as the Haddenham and Thame Greenway. This email forms the first bi-monthly scheme update that will be issued to the Parish/Town Councils and local interest groups, with the next scheme update proposed for end April 2020. 

 

Online survey:

An online survey on the Haddenham and Thame Greenway was conducted between 25th November and 9th December 2019. The purpose of this public engagement exercise was to help us understand how people currently travel between Haddenham & Thame Parkway Station and Thame and, in doing so, help us to assess whether it would be beneficial to introduce an off-road walking and cycling route between these locations.

 

The online survey received a total of 2012 responses. The responses have now been analysed, a summary of the results has been published on a new designed webpage for the scheme:  https://www.buckscc.gov.uk/services/transport-and-roads/cycling-and-walking/new-walking-and-cycling-routes/haddenham-and-thame-greenway. 

 

The results of this online survey will be considered as part of the progression of the Haddenham and Thame Greenway scheme, alongside other information, and the scheme webpage will be updated as further information becomes available. 

 

Background work:

Dedicated officers from both County Councils are working on the Haddenham and Thame Greenway scheme, and provisional funding is available for progressing background work.

 

As part of this background work, Transport for Buckinghamshire has recently collected traffic speed and classification data at sites in the vicinity of Haddenham and Thame Parkway Station.  The data from these surveys shows the speed and type of vehicles travelling along these roads, and will be used to inform the scheme design work along this section.

 

We will endeavour to keep you informed as the scheme progresses through the bi-monthly scheme updates.

IN response to complaints about illegal parking in Thame Town Centre, Police Community Support Officers will now be carrying out more targeted enforcement. 

This enforcement, supported by all the Town Councils in South Oxfordshire and South and Vale District Council, will begin imminently.

The message to the public is to please park legally or you may be subject to an initial fine of £30. Illegal parking is not only dangerous but diverts precious police resources from their core role.

In practice this means that some allotted PCSO time will be ring fenced to parking enforcement. Thame will be one area they will prioritise.