I hope everyone has had a good summer. The County Council has not taken time off, although most of us took a break for a few weeks. And we have already had key meetings of the County Council and Cabinet, including a special cabinet meeting to approve the congestion charge for the city.
Budget
We had been hoping that the new government would stick to its pledge to bring the local government budget cycle forward each year and to deliver multi-year settlements. This would make it much easier to plan spending and charging.
Unfortunately, the Chancellor has announced that the budget won’t be till 26 November and that the settlement for local government will be at the “usual time”. That means the last day before Christmas, and therefore local authority finance staff will work over Christmas to prepare budgets.
There is also a review of financing arrangements in place, which won’t get finalised until just before the settlement. This is likely to see a substantial reduction in the money Oxfordshire gets.
The ministers responsible for local government are now no longer the same as at the start of last week.
Local Government Reorganisation
The new ministers have not yet commented on the process for local government reorganisation. You should have seen the three options for the area - one Oxfordshire unitary authority, two authorities (comprising the current West Oxfordshire, Cherwell and City areas as one and Vale, South Oxfordshire and West Berkshire as the other) or three authorities (as above but with an enlarged city authority as well). The last one of these will leave a tiny and probably unsustainable authority for us in the north and has explicitly been proposed to permit building on the Green Belt, including that between here and Yarnton and Wolvercote.
Congestion Charge
You will have seen that the Cabinet has approved a Congestion Charge for the very centre of the city. This will speed up bus journeys and make them more reliable. It is a temporary measure, while Botley Road remains blocked to motor vehicles, and the intention is to replace it with a filter scheme when Botley Road reopens.
For those who want to drive into Oxford, rather than using another means of transport (including using the Park and Rides, from which subsidised bus rides go into the city) you will still be able to do so, and nearly all journeys can be made without the need to pay the congestion charge, providing you use the nearest point from the ring road to your destination. The congestion charge will discourage the use of the City Centre as a through route, and that is what will help reduce the congestion we have been suffering for decades.
There is much more detail available on the County Council website.
Buses
A reminder that we have excellent bus services. From Eynsham you can get to Stanton Harcourt, Hanborough, Witney, Eynsham, the JR, Summertown and Headington, as well as the city, without needing more than one bus. Adult fares are capped at £3 per single, and you can buy day tickets from £6.20.
Roads
Repairs
You should have started to see the effects of our record investment in road maintenance. That means potholes are being filled, and key roads are being resurfaced. There will never be enough money for this task, and of course potholes will keep appearing, particularly on routes that have HGVs on them. You will always notice the holes and not the smooth roads, but there really has been an improvement.
A40
The A40 Eynsham to Wolvercote improvements are going through the planning process, with a view to the first work happening early in 2026. These will make bus journeys quicker, with bus stops in more convenient places, and will stop the current blockage places in the A40 being so disruptive. These include the roundabout at Eynsham and the Cassington/A40 junction.
-
There will be no more long delays at Cassington turn, either for A40 traffic or people driving into or out of Cassington.
-
There will also be improved road crossings and an improved pavement and cycle paths.
-
The sequencing of work will see the Park and Ride opening as the first part of the scheme.
The “Access to Witney” scheme, making the Shores Green junction to the east of Witney a four-armed junction, is ahead of schedule. When it opens, we can expect more traffic to use it to get on the westbound A40, and this will reduce traffic on Lower Road and through Cassington and hence on the A40 around Eynsham.
Oxford United
Oxford United got planning permission from Cherwell for the new stadium on land owned by the County Council in Kidlington. This is good news for the club and its fans, and I was pleased to negotiate the deal on behalf of the county council. Among other things it makes it very difficult for any new owner of the club in the future to separate the ground from the teams.
The club has promised that 90% of fans will arrive other than in cars.
As ever, you can contact me at dan.levy@oxfordshire.gov.uk