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/.

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:

Turn off your idling engine, say the pupils of Windmill Primary. pic.twitter.com/URvPvCR8Jv

— Jonathan Ives (@jonny_ives) June 13, 2018

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