A DECISION on whether buses will be banned from Queen Street once the Westgate centre opens will now be made by the Department for

Oxford Bus Company managing director Phil Southall puts forward his argument for keeping the street open to buses.

On the surface it may seem like an ordinary, robust debate over public realm, but make no mistake – the proposed bus ban in Queen Street will have a long-term negative effect on our city.

We have objected, in the strongest terms, to the Oxfordshire County Council’s plans.

The proposed alternatives do not address the key issues that the closure will create, and this will affect everyone.

So what are these key issues? The first of course, is where the displaced buses will go.

The council has suggested St Aldates – the worst area of air pollution in Oxford, by a considerable margin.

St Aldates is already the most polluted part of the city, exceeding the guidelines set by the World Health Organisation, and the council is proactively trying to make it worse.

In addition, the impact of the additional 149,000 unnecessary miles that buses would need to travel each year will no doubt have a profound effect on air quality – possibly even on streets where pollution currently isn’t an issue.

None of this takes into account the other negative impacts of this additional mileage either.

Longer journey times, more congestion, and higher running costs amount to more expense.

This cost is ultimately borne by our customers.

What about Queen Street’s air quality then?

I’m glad you asked. It’s never been a concern.

Pollution readings in the street fall within the World Health Organisation’s safe limits, and buses have co-existed with pedestrians on the street for decades.

We accept that the removal of some services from the street in 2009 was appropriate, and since then a good balance has been struck.

The success of such shared use schemes is evident in the eight years that followed, and is mirrored in many other comparable cities around the UK, Exeter being a good example.

The council has not presented any evidence of real or potential pedestrian-vehicle conflict as part of its argument, even though we have repeatedly delivered plenty of our own to the contrary.

One of the key flaws to the council's proposal is to introduce a permanent bus stop outside the entrance to the Covered Market, at the top of the High Street.

Even at the best of times, this footway area is overcrowded and pedestrians are forced to walk into the road to pass the throngs of people.

Even at the quietest times, there is insufficient pavement area here for passengers to wait; on any given day with regular volumes of pedestrian traffic however, anybody wishing to pass a waiting crowd will need to step off the kerb and into the road.

This isn't only our concern – just last Thursday Derek Sherwood (letters, 13 July) raised this issue. To actively make it worse is nothing short of negligent.

Another is the council’s failure to take into account its own, supposedly democratic, consultation process.

Forty-eight per cent of respondents opposed the ban, whilst only a third supported it.

Principle among the objectors, aside from ourselves of course, was none other than Oxford University, which described the scheme as a ‘bad idea’.

The Oxford Pedestrian Association – whose role is to champion safe and convenient pedestrian access – opposed the plans. Christ Church College and the Oxford Transport & Access Group (OXTRAG) also condemned the scheme.

During the current 'temporary' closure, we have had to dramatically re-route our services causing untold inconvenience for the people of Oxford.

Our X3 service previously provided a reliable, frequent connection from Abingdon to Oxford Rail Station.

To work around the closure, there was no feasible way we could maintain this, whilst still keeping an acceptable level of service on the busy Abingdon-St Aldates corridor.

Marston has also lost its direct connection to the station, a fact that has raised numerous complaints from its councillors.

All of these issues will continue ad infinitum, should this myopic proposal be pushed through. Whilst safety is always an important consideration, attached to it is often a high level of emotion which can cloud one's better judgement.

It would be foolish to allow the hysteria of the minority to cause long-lasting damage to our city.

It would be irresponsible to suggest there is some underlying malevolent factor driving the council’s determination to ‘railroad’ this scheme.

It flies in the face of evidence, public and private interests, commercial literacy – not to mention the generally accepted principles of logic.

In 1726, whilst studying at St John’s College right here in Oxford, Nicholas Amhurst famously wrote that there is 'not a more uncommon thing in the world than common sense'.

He must be turning in his grave to think that 300 years hence, this statement still rings true.