Oxford has had traffic problems for a long time. A very long time.
Attempts to traffic have also been made, including the Transport Strategy of 1999, which put 5 Bus Gates in the centre. But since the 2010s traffic has had a negative impact on the county’s economy and people’s freedom of movement, leading to calls to reduce traffic and the 2015 Oxford Transport Strategy proposing Traffic Filters, a Zero Emissions Zone and a Workplace Parking Levy.
Here, we attempt a timeline of Oxford traffic jams, and some of the attempts to tackle them through history.
Spot any more? Send them to: jams@cohsat.org.uk
1771. Congested streets for horse-drawn coaches, before cars even existed. (We have not yet found references to jams of oxen at a ford, but we keep searching…)
1937.
1941.
1953.
1955.
1960. In 1960, so many workers at the Morris car factory used bicycles, they caused traffic jams when they all left the plant at the end of a shift.
1962.
1971.
1972. A jam inward along Botley Road.
1973. The first major steps are taken to address the jams in Oxford.
Most traffic, except buses and taxis, is banned from Cornmarket and Queen Street.
Park and Ride services begin in Oxford, in an attempt to reduce congestion.
Oxford has the longest continuously operating Park and Ride in the UK.
1975.
1975. The BBC documentary “Cars without chaos” featured Oxford as a city with traffic problems, and taking some steps to solve them. A traffic management expert proposed the closure of Magdalen Bridge to traffic – a proposal that evolved into the Bus Gates of 1999 and the Traffic Filters proposal of 2015 (to be implemented on experimental basis in 2024). Unfortunately the video is no longer available except in archives.
1986. Congestion on the northern ring road. Traffic has roughly doubled from the 1980s to the 2020s
1987. A jam inward along Botley Road. Pictured from Seacourt Tower.
1992. Jams in Oxford are so bad, someone puts up signs branding it ‘Carbon MonOxford’.
1993. Bill Bryson calls out Oxford in his book ‘Notes from a Small Island’.
1999. Bus gates were introduced to 5 central Oxford locations.
Only buses, cycles, taxis/private hire and emergency vehicles are permitted to pass during their times of operation.
Also, the remaining traffic is removed from Cornmarket.
The Oxford Mail reported on the ‘Keep the High Street Open’ campaign, which said: “They have spent £20m on traffic chaos. You cannot simply close roads that have been the main arteries of the city for 1,000 years.”
A follow-up survey found visitors numbers unaffected. (Source: Pedestrian Pound 2018)
2011.
2013. The Oxford Mail reports that the Oxfordshire Business Barometer shows 76 per cent of company owners and directors believe traffic congestion and the quality of transport links are “adversely affecting”.
Nicola Blackwood MP picks up on the issue and Council leader Ian Hudspeth says: “This confirms transport is a major issue for local businesses and is holding back growth”.
2015. The Oxford Transport Strategy, part of Local Transport Plan 4 (LTP4) is approved by Oxfordshire County Council
This includes a plan to reduce traffic through Traffic Filters (Controls), Zero Emissions Zone, and Workplace Parking Levy. The Traffic Filters are proposed for implementation in stages with the Eastern Arc by 2019 and the Centre by 2023. (This gets delayed by process and Covid).
2016. The Oxford Mail report on longer than ever queuing times on ‘Oxford’s nightmare roads’ (e.g. Cowley Road 8m19s), traffic queues being a ‘key concern’ for businesses and the local economy in the Strategic Economic Plan, and businesses having difficulties with recruitment and meetings due to traffic.
2016.
2018. Buses on St Clements, Iffley Road, Abingdon Road and Botley Road delayed due to too much traffic – a regular feature on many days.
2019. Trafficmaster analysis shows 91 miles of Oxfordshire’s A Road network (12.3%) has delays of more than 1 minute in the Weekday peak during term time.
2020. Oxford Bus MD, Phil Southall, describes in a blog why removing congestion is essential to an effective and reinvestable bus service.
2020. As Covid lockdowns are lifted, and people go shopping by car, Oxford sees a return to queues of traffic on most of its arterial roads. Reported by Oxford Mail.
Compiled by Owen McKnight (Oxford Pedestrians’ Association), March 2024, with additions from Robin Tucker (CoHSAT).
Sources: 1771: Minutes of the Oxford Paving Commissioners (page xix); 1937: Hansard (26 June 1961); 1941: T. Lawrence Dale (Wikipedia); 1953: Oxfordshire History Centre (POX0577522); 1955: Ian Davis, Experiencing Oxford (page 200); 1962: Cas Oorthuys, Term in Oxford (page 8); 1971: Carlton Reid, https://roadswerenotbuiltforcars.com/oxford; 1972: Cyclox Facebook (12 April 2023); 1973: Oxfordshire History Centre; 1975: Oxford Society 27(1); 1975: Danny Yee, Oxford Blog (December 2022); 1986: Daily Telegraph (February); 1987: Oxford Mail (14 November 2018); 1992: Oxford Mail (29 November 2018); 1993: Bill Bryson, Notes from a Small Island; 1999: Oxford Mail; 2011: Oxford Mail (15 June); 2013: Oxford Mail (17 October); 2015: Oxford Transport Strategy; 2016: Oxford Mail (25 July); 2016: Daily Mail (30 August); 2018: Twitter; 2019: Oxfordshire County Council; 2020: Oxford Mail (18 December); 2020: Oxford Bus Company
