Busy Plain junction set for big changes (From The Oxford Times)

Busy Plain junction set for big changes

7:20am Friday 3rd August 2012 in News By Damian Fantato , covering Summertown, Jericho and North Oxford. Call me on 01865 425429

A MAJOR junction in East Oxford could soon change to make it more cycle-friendly.

The Plain – where traffic from Magdalen Bridge, St Clement’s, Cowley and Iffley roads converges – has long been considered an accident blackspot for cyclists.

And the city council is proposing to spend £35,000 on a series of high priority improvements.

This will include altering the entrance to Cowley Place to make space for a cycle lane between Iffley Road and Magdalen Bridge.

Changes will also be made on the approach to the roundabout from St Clement’s so cyclists can bypass queuing traffic more easily.

Graham Jones, who represents St Clement’s on the city council, said: “This is the busiest pinchpoint for Oxford’s cyclists, with four major traffic flows converging.

“Lack of lane discipline on The Plain is shown by cyclists and drivers alike – so something more radical is needed.

“It could be a cycle lane linked with pedestrian lights-controlled crossings, or shared road space as proposed for Frideswide Square.”

The alterations form part of an £800,000 council scheme to help make the city a better place for cyclists.

A total of 57 projects across the city have been listed to be carried out.

Colin Cook, the city council’s board member for city development, said he was working with Oxfordshire County Council over some of the improvements. He said: “It is dangerous for cyclists so we are trying to give them a fair crack of the whip.

“The Plain is quite a significant junction and I can see how a cyclist who is not assertive would be intimidated by it.”

Cash will come from a number of different sources.

The council will spend £100,000 from its capital budget in each of the first two years of the scheme followed by £50,000 in each of the following years. It then plans to spend £10,000 from its revenue budget in each of the four years of the scheme, with an additional £500,000 coming from Section 106 money which is paid to the authority by developers to help with infrastructure within communities.