roadworks

Headington Headlines #381

TonyOX3

Your weekly round-up of local news for 13 – 19 August.

The City’s Executive Board agreed to introduce parking charges at Manor Place Farm, Marston (see HH380). The scheme now goes to the County for consideration and public consultation.

While the lower (western) section of Staunton Road is closed at Headley Way for Access to Headington work, SGN (Southern Gas Networks) is taking the opportunity to replace the gas mains in the road.

Oxonbike, the original bike rental scheme using docking stations, has closed blaming the emergence of the dockless bike schemes.

The mysteriously-disappearing planning application for an extension to the A&E Department at the JR Hospital has reappeared on the City Council’s website. Its reference number is 18/01851/FUL and the close of the consultation period has been put back to 15 September.

In other mysterious planning application news, the controversial Wychwood Lane development in Risinghurst lives on in a vegetative state. The ‘expiry date’ shown on the City’s website keeps being pushed back although nothing seems to be happening. The previous time I looked the date was 31 August; now it’s 15 September. The application itself was strangely omitted from the list of ‘forthcoming applications’ on the East Area Planning Committee’s agenda earlier this month. Is the new expiry date set to allow for the next EAPC meeting on 5 September, I wonder?

Another report of a sliced bike stand in Headington. Be careful where you leave your bikes!

My favourite Headington-related tweet:

There were no new posts on the Headington & Marston e-democracy forum this week.

Headington Headlines #373

TonyOX3

Your weekly round-up of local news for 18 – 24 June.

The advisory cycle tracks at the top end of Headley Way have been removed and the central white line shifted. ‘Cyclists Dismount’ signs appeared but after protests they were removed on Tuesday afternoon. The County highways engineers said they had been mistakenly left after some earlier work for which they were needed.

County Councillor Glynis Phillips (Barton, Sandhills & Risinghurst) is pressing for the right turn from the A40 into Collinwood Road to be re-opened for the duration of the sewer repair works which have closed Green Road. She says temporary traffic lights would prevent the kind of accidents which happened on the A40 before the junction was closed.

The closure of the Six Bells pub in Quarry is confirmed. Greene King are looking for new tenants.

Back in November last year, shortly after the new Westgate opened, I wrote a critical article about the lack of cycle parking spaces at the new development. I was sceptical about whether the promised number of spaces required under Westgate’s planning conditions would ever be provided. Now eight months later it seems the requirement might almost have been met. Exact numbers are still uncertain, but the Oxford Mail reports Cyclox as being fairly happy with the latest situation.

Active posts on the Headington & Marston e-democracy forum this week:

  • Chinese Dance and Martial Arts at Oxford Festival of the Arts

Headington Headlines #372

TonyOX3

Your weekly round-up of local news for 11 – 17 June.

File under “Oh no, not more roadworks!” A collapsed sewer in Green Road means the road will be closed for about three weeks while Thames Water carry out the necessary repairs.

Oxford Bus Company’s ‘Pick-me-Up’ service starts on Monday 25 June. It will operate within the area shown on the map below. Within the zone a minibus picks you up more-or-less anywhere and takes you to within a short walk of your chosen destination for a fixed fare of £2.50. You’ll need the app on your smartphone. Full details here pickmeup.oxfordbus.co.uk/.

Pick-me-Up operating area
Pick-me-Up operating area

The collapse of South Oxfordshire’s local plan means the choice of housing sites in the district has gone back to square one. Land at Wick Farm and on the Christ Church College land next to Barton Park, both of which had been rejected in the original proposals, is now back on the agenda. Watch this space for updates.

Oxford Civic Society added its voice to the chorus of objections to the siting of the proposed Swan School at the Harlow Centre in Marston. “A quart into a pint pot”; “based on expediency”; “the site is far too small”; traffic managemnt measures, especially for cycles, are “implausible”.

So far I’ve had two leaflets through my letterbox promoting LibDem Stefanie (‘Stef’) Garden @SGarden13 as Ruth Wilkinson’s replacement. Nothing yet from declared Conservative and Labour candidates, and I don’t know if the Green’s will be fielding anyone. The poll is on Thursday 19 July.

The Costa Coffee drive-thru [sic] at the Horspath Driftway trading estate (where Aldi is) officially opens today, although informed sources say it’s been open for quite a few days.

My favourite Headington-related tweet:

Once again there were no new posts on the Headington & Marston e-democracy forum this week: