Walton Street to reopen following consultation with local people

A decision has been taken to reopen Walton Street in Oxford by Oxfordshire Council’s Cabinet Member for Environment.

A recommendation by officers was approved at a meeting on Thursday 29 April, which means that the barrier has kept Walton Street closed since 2019 will be removed and reopened to all vehicles in both directions. The closure in 2019 followed a period of maintenance work on the route.

Other localised traffic management measures implemented to complement the closure of Walton Street will also be removed.

The decision follows the results of a public consultation in March on an alternative Jericho and Walton Manor area traffic scheme aimed at promoting active travel. A total of 815 responses were submitted and the results analysed by an independent external research agency.

When asked about overall feelings about the consultation proposals, a majority (62 per cent) of respondents indicated that they had negative views. Meanwhile 27 per cent of respondents indicated positive opinion on the proposals. When asked about each individual motor vehicle restrictions put forward by the area pilot, there was largely an equal split in opinion.

Proposals are, however, being developed to address both the environment and transport in the wider area that are expected to benefit the neighbourhood. These include improvements to Banbury and Woodstock Road, the proposed expansion of the Oxford Zero Emission Zone in 2022 and traffic reduction with the implementation of Connecting Oxford.