Congestion charge decided 'behind closed doors'

Oxfordshire County Council's cabinet has agreed a £5 daily charge for car drivers on roads with high levels of congestion

Concerns have been raised over the transparency of a decision to introduce a temporary congestion charge for Oxford.

Oxfordshire County Council's cabinet has agreed a £5 daily charge for car drivers on roads with high levels of congestion.

Speaking last week, former cabinet member for highways Tim Bearder said the authority had signed a contract with with the bus companies and ran "the risk of potential litigation" if a policy to reduce congestion was not implemented.

The council said the legally-binding agreement did not mean the charge was inevitable.

But Conservative councillor Liam Walker said it showed the public consultation into the scheme had just been "a box ticking exercise".

More than 7,000 people responded to the survey, with about three-quarters saying the plan would negatively impact them.

Hythe Bridge Street would be one of six charging points

Papers dating back to 2022 show the local authority entered into an agreement with Oxfordshire's bus companies, under the enhanced partnership plan as well as the Oxfordshire Bus Service Improvement Plan.

These are not uncommon, and were designed to encourage more people back onto buses after the Covid-19 pandemic.

The partnership resulted in a fleet of 159 electric buses being introduced to Oxfordshire as well as a reduction in bus fares.

Part of the plans also included a legally binding commitment by the local authority to introduce policy to reduce congestion, so that bus journey times would improve by 10%, by December 2025.

The county council had intended for this to be done through its approved traffic filters scheme, but with that delayed due to the ongoing closure of Botley Road, this now meant a new "plan B" was needed to meet the agreed targets.

Mr Bearder, who remains on the council's cabinet, signed the agreement with the bus companies three years ago.

He said the enhanced partnership was "legally enforceable" by the transport commissioner and that if the council failed to uphold its "side of the bargain" it would "run the risk of potential litigation".

'Disgusting'

Mr Walker, who chaired the scrutiny committee that looked into the charge, said details of the legal agreement had not been made clear and "should have been made public".

"This reckless approach further highlights what many of us have been saying all along – the consultation was nothing more than a box-ticking exercise, designed to give the illusion of listening while decisions had already been made behind closed doors," he said.

Emily Scaysbrook, director of the Open Roads for Oxford pressure group, said the contact "supports" the group's plan to legally challenge the scheme.

She said: "It's frustrating to see the consultation process be treated in the way that it has."

Ms Scaysbrook, who owns the independent games shop Hoyle's of Oxford, added: "I don't know why they can't have some humility, and recognise that this isn't the solution - it's disgusting."

The county council said the congestion charge had been subject to consultation, funding and external approvals.