The county’s highways engineers justify their existence, and of course their salaries, by dreaming up new, and to the layman’s eyes, often unnecessary road projects. Perhaps the most useless of these in recent years has been the disastrous Frideswide Square, a dud from day one and shortly to be redone at huge inconvenience to all road users. Switch off the lights would be the cheaper, better option.

Meanwhile, at The Plain, we have roadworks costing a cool £1.3m and continuing until May. The aim is to improve conditions for pedestrians and cyclists, though speaking as one of the latter I saw nothing wrong with how things were. I have pedalled through there on most days during the past decade, making use at different times of all three available exits — indeed, all four when I have turned back on myself. Nothing has ever struck me as difficult or dangerous.

Word reaches me on the grapevine, too, that the ‘cycling community’ doesn’t think much of the scheme. It would have been better to spend the money on some of Oxford’s atrocious road surfaces. Now these really are dangerous.

Last weekend saw the first road closure for The Plain works, denying access into St Clements to traffic from Magdalen Bridge. Instead, traffic is being directed into Cowley Road, with a left turn along Jeune Street to resume the route out of town.

On Sunday, I watched in amazement as two huge double-deckers struggled to achieve the turn, backing into Cowley Road to improve the angle of attack. The driver of the second of these — a 400 Park-and-Ride service passing at 3.30pm — managed to steer his vehicle into a bike chained to the railings of a tree. If this was damaged then its owner now knows who to blame.