11 December 2025
The Coalition for Healthy Streets and Active Travel in Oxfordshire, CoHSAT, welcomes the results for the first month of the Temporary Congestion Charge for Cars in Oxford, published this week. The scheme was designed to improve bus journey times in advance of the experimental Traffic Filters, and it is has succeeded in this.
“We commend Oxfordshire County Council for their transparency by publishing the data on the results of the Temporary Congestion Charge[1]. We’re pleased that in the first month it is already benefitting thousands of bus passengers – an increasing number thanks to the new and more frequent services that Oxford Bus Company and Stagecoach have been able to add thanks to the charge,” said Robin Tucker, Co-Chair of CoHSAT.
Inbound bus journeys in the morning peak on main routes are 12% quicker by an average, and other bus journeys are overall quicker. Journey times for other vehicles within the Ring Road are slightly quicker, and along the Ring Road are on average 1% slower than last year with variations by section. Background traffic levels in Oxfordshire are rising at about 2.5% a year with an increasing population.
Footfall (a count of the number of pedestrians streets for at least five minutes) is up in 8 out of 10 locations compared to last year, by total of 16%. This is a spectactuarly positive performance compared to a 1.2% drop on High Streets nationally[2]. The City Centre footfall was up by 22% and Covered Market footfall up 30%, but High Street east was down by 8%. The council report notes that weather can have a strong influence on footfall numbers over a short period.
Robin continued, “Our members have noted how much quicker buses are, and how much safer it feels to walk and cycle on the quieter streets. 16% increase in footfall in Oxford compared to 1.2% decrease in High Streets nationally really shows the value of improving access to the city by reducing congestion. But this is just the first month, we will keep monitoring the data to see how the results develop.”
Siobhann Mansel-Pleydell of Oxfordshire Liveable Streets added, “CoHSAT groups including Oxfordshire Liveable Streets campaigned for the Temporary Congestion Charge on the grounds of fairness. With faster buses and clear use of exemptions by those who need them most – from Blue Badge holders to carers and community health workers – what we’re seeing is the start of more equitable use of our road space. We’re encouraged by this first data release. We’d also love to see air pollution data in future reports, so we can also understand the full health benefits of reducing congestion.”
[1] Temporary congestion charge monitoring data | Oxfordshire County Council
[2] Budget jitters and bad weather drag down UK retail visits in November
