Life in and around Headington & OX3 (mostly), and Oxford (occasionally)
"To every complex problem there is a simple solution, startling in its simplicity, piercing in its clarity, and hopelessly and completely wrong" - Gore Vidal.
Oxford now has four operators offering dockless bike hire in the city. These are in addition to the two docking-type systems which have been going for some time now, Oxonbikes and Brompton Hire, and a hybrid scheme run by Bainton Bikes/Donkey Republic.
The dockless concept is that you can pick up any available bike, ride it, and park it at the end of your journey. The operators just ask that you park somewhere legal, accessible, and non-obstructive. An app on your smartphone or other device shows where the available bikes are and takes care of the locking, unlocking and payment.
Some operators require a deposit. Some have a credit points system where you can earn or lose points for considerate or inconsiderate use, and where the charges are higher if you have too few points. Typical trip charges for the dockless bikes are 50p/30 minutes, though Ofo bikes are currently free to use.
The Donkey Republic/Bainton Bikes scheme is slightly different and aimed at longer use. They charge by the day; you collect your bike from one of several specified locations around the city (including Headington Shops and Oxford Brookes) and return it to the same place.
Longer rentals are also available, for example from Bainton Bikes, or try any of the bike shops in and around the city.
Lastly I should include Cycle.Land, an Oxford start-up someone described as “AirBnB for bikes”. It’s a platform where people can share their bike with other people for a fee. Of course it’s also a way for someone who has a bike – or a few bikes – to make a few pounds renting it or them out. Cycle.Land provide the mobile app, insurance and support, but like AirBnB it’s up to each owner and renter to make arrangements between themselves. I was surprised to see about 120 bikes listed in Oxford, including some tandems. Typical rental prices range from £1 to a few ££ a day.
Oxfordshire County and Oxford City have drawn up this Code of Conduct for dockless operators
Here is a summary of the various schemes in alphabetical order.
Folding bikes kept in lockers. Hire & return to rail station only – can be to a different station. Annual fee + prepay. Frequent and Leisure tariffs. 24-hr hire period.
Pedal & e-bikes available. Hire & return to docking stations around the city – see locations. Prepay. Either subscribe £26pa + 30min free then £1/hr or no subscription + £1/hr. E-bikes available at twice the rates.
The new Westgate shopping centre, the latest jewel in Oxford’s crown, opened to the public on Tuesday 24 October. There were Important People, razzamatazz, and crowds of citizens curious to explore this new quarter of the city. But beneath the glitz and glamour something was amiss. This is the story of The Missing Cycle Parking Spaces.
Why does it matter?
It matters because Oxford’s roads are choked with traffic. St Aldates and the High are often literally full of buses. Emergency vehicles have a hard time getting through. Air pollution is well over legal limits. The County and City Councils trumpet their policies of encouraging people to switch their journey habits from motor vehicles to public transport and cycles. Time and again we are told Oxford is a ‘cycle city’. This is true only in so far as determined people choose to get around by bike because it’s quicker, cheaper and healthier than other options; but they do this despite the grossly inadequate infrastructure and the clear objective dangers.
Time and time again the reality is that cyclists are marginalised and ignored. To provide safe attractive cycle routes means spending money on physical infrastructure, not just paint. But with the possible exception of the Access to Headington scheme, where we must wait and see the outcome, this hasn’t happened.
Planning conditions
In granting planning permission for the Westgate development Oxford City placed a condition that required Westgate to provide about 1000 extra cycle parking spaces. Never mind that this is about half the number that would be considered adequate in Holland, Denmark or Germany, and only two-thirds of those required under the council’s own planning policies; it’s a step in the right direction. Meanwhile over 100 spaces were removed from the city centre to make way for construction. Cycle city? Not. It just reinforces the perception that despite the fine words and policies, making ordinary everyday journeys by bike is seen by our planners and transport engineers as a marginal activity which can be slotted in as an afterthought. No surprise that on opening day the 1000 space car park in Westgate was fully operational.
What happened?
Fast forward to opening day. Westgate’s website boasts of the 1000 cycle parking spaces they have provided, and the ‘Cycle Hub’ – covered, secure bike parking with a workshop run by Oxford’s well-regarded Broken Spoke Cooperative. But wait – where are all these spaces? Where is the Hub? Mystified cyclists started to ask, and were airily waved away (I was a witness). Here’s how it unfolded.
There is supposed to be masses of cycle parking all around the Westgate, but I couldn’t find it. People were locking bikes to street signs pic.twitter.com/pV1SXg2Dof
Cyclox audited what was actually in place. In summary:
Only 3% of the promised 1000 net extra cycle parking spaces have been installed at New Westgate. There are no cycle parking spaces in convenient locations – none at all. The developer has run rings around the planning authorities and has breached their planning conditions. It is the City Council’s obligation now to enforce provision of 972 extra cycle parking spaces.
Their full report is here, which also quotes the two planning conditions placed on the Westgate developers by the City’s planners.
On Friday the City installed some temporary bike parking, caught on camera when Green Cllr David Thomas was filming a piece for his facebook page.
After the weekend the City Council responded to the Green’s petition:
30 OCT 2017 — The Westgate Shopping Centre redevelopment has not yet been fully completed – workers are still on site and there are some shops still to be completed and a lot of work around the edges of the new development.
Oxford City Council, as the city’s planning authority, insisted on bicycle parking being included in the Westgate Shopping Centre redevelopment and we are pleased that new bike racks for 1,000 bicycles will be installed as part of the development.
The provision of the bike racks for 1,000 bicycles is a requirement of the planning permission for the new Westgate Shopping Centre. The development was created followed extensive public consultation with stakeholders, including cycling groups in Oxford such as Cyclox. This consultation included the location and type of bike racks that would be installed.
Sadly, although 180 cycle spaces have been installed, the installation of the majority of the new bike racks has been delayed. Last week the Westgate Shopping Centre developer apologised for this delay, and again reassured the City Council and the public that it will install all the bike racks and meet the planning requirement. On Friday, the City Council installed 50 temporary bike racks in St Ebbes Street.
We are disappointed that the cycle parking was not fully installed prior to the shopping centre being opened, and are working with the developers to ensure that it is installed and operational as soon as possible.
A week after opening the ‘1000 spaces’ claim has disappeared from Westgate’s website; it now says:
If you come to Westgate by bike, you’ll be able to park conveniently around the centre using our bicycle spaces in the vicinity of Westgate. Indoor secure parking stands as well as outdoor parking at Greyfriars Place at the northern end of Old Greyfriars Street is also available.
and the link to ‘Cycle Hub information’ gets an Error 404 Unavailable.
What next?
It’s speculation of course, but here’s my scenario for how things will play out over the next six months or so. Westgate will install some new bike stands, perhaps a couple of hundred scattered around the block. They will then say that they can’t install any more because there’s not enough safe space, the pavements are too narrow, the buses might hit them on the tight bends, etc etc – all concerns expressed over the past four years by, among others, Cyclox and Oxford Civic Society. They will apply for a variation to the planning condition which releases them from the obligation to provide the remaining stands; the council will try to get it nodded through under delegated powers; the Greens and LibDems will blow the whistle and get it put to the West Area Planning Committee where Labour will close ranks and back Westgate
And Oxford’s cyclists will once again have been marginalised.
Oxford City Council operates a register of HMOs (houses in multiple occupancy) in the city. An HMO is defined as “a building or part of a building that is occupied by three or more people from two or more households (unrelated families) who share facilities such as a kitchen or bathroom, pay rent and it is their main place of residence.”1 The latest copy of the register (an Excel spreadsheet), dated 21 July 2017 is published on the Council’s website.
I have extracted the HMOs in the OX3 postcode area – there are 729 of them – and put them on a Google map.2 Explore at your leisure!
The Council is currently consulting on the Preferred Options stage of the new Local Plan covering the period up to 2036. They are proposing a change in their planning policy on HMOs, arguing that purpose-built HMOs in the right locations could help the provision of affordable homes. If you are interested in this issue and the associated question of purpose-built student accommodation I strongly recommend you read the relevant sections of the Preferred Options document, i.e. paragraphs 3.52 and Option 19 on HMOs, and 3.53 – 3.67 and Option 20 on student accommodation, and send in your comments before the deadline of 25 August.
