Too simple to be true (From The Oxford Times)

Too simple to be true

6:50am Thursday 4th February 2010 in

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Sir – Jeremy Mogford is, and always has been, absolutely right about the appalling volume of bus traffic in St Aldates and The High (Report, January 21).

For my part, I am delighted to see cars excluded but the effect has merely exacerbated the problem as the streets have become a through route for every kind of bus traffic.

I would prefer to see the streets as an entirely traffic-free and pedestrian zone, but if that cannot be achieved then at least the obvious candidates for exclusion should be dealt with immediately, ie the London coaches and airport buses.

There is no conceivable reason why they should follow a tortuous route from Gloucester Green, through St Ebbe’s, up St Aldates, down the High and through St Clements. Every one of them could equally exit the city along the Abingdon Road (serving Redbridge park-and-ride), and even some along the Botley Road (serving Seacourt Park and Ride).

They would then proceed round the bypass to the Headington roundabout to serve the Thornhill park-and-ride.

All in all, a much more efficient service for anyone wanting to travel to London, particularly as parking at all of the park-and-ride locations is free following their takeover by the county council. It seems to me to be too obvious to be true.

John Simms, Boars Hill