A new area strategy has been developed for Witney as part of the third Local Transport Plan (LTP3) which runs from 2011 to 2030.
The town strategy aims to deliver transport improvements to Witney with a focus on walking, cycling, bus service and infrastructure improvements. Together these will aim to reduce congestion around the town and have environmental benefits.
The strategy will influence travel behaviour by encouraging people to make fewer trips by car and replace these with journeys made by foot, bike, or bus. Improvements to cycling and walking networks, and better bus services, will be examined in conjunction with road improvements and traffic management schemes.
This area strategy replaces the Witney Integrated Transport and Land Use Strategy (WITLUS) 2003. Planning obligation contributions, secured in order to mitigate the impacts of development towards WITLUS, will be able to be used on the LTP3 Witney Area Strategy and be in accordance with the planning obligations.
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Objectives
Walking and pedestrian environment
- Improve facilities for pedestrians, including disabled people, across Witney. Improve links between employment and residential areas to key services and destinations such as the town centre, by foot.
- Work with West Oxfordshire District Council and developers to ensure new developments are designed to promote permeability on foot both within the site and to link with the existing settlement.
- Ensure urban footways join up with rights of way and rural footpaths.
Cycling
- Improve facilities for cyclists and develop schemes to provide a high quality cycle network.
- Work with West Oxfordshire District Council and developers to ensure new developments are designed to promote permeability by bike both within the site and to link with the existing settlement.
Public transport
- Work with the town council to improve the bus stop environment and appearance in and around Witney through investment in appropriate infrastructure to ensure the provision of good quality and informative bus information at bus stops and local centres.
- Ensure that new developments are located and designed to encourage use of the bus, with particular attention to minimising walking distances to bus stops on the strategic inter-urban routes. Seek contributions for new bus stops and associated infrastructure to serve new developments.
- Support measures which will reduce congestion around the Bridge Street junction to enable bus services to operate a reliable service and journey time.
- Work with the bus companies to maintain and enhance the current premium bus services to Oxford.
Rail
- Promote trips by bus to Hanborough Station, as the nearest rail station to Witney.
- Encourage sustainable trips to Oxford Rail Station to connect to the wider rail network.
Behavioural change
- Work with organisations and businesses to reduce the need to travel by car and reduce inefficient car use by improving the availability and quality of travel information and supporting other initiatives such as car sharing.
- Ensure developers of new sites in Witney undertake detailed transport assessments and implement travel plans for the residents, employees and users of their site.
Highway infrastructure and demand management
- To make the best use of existing road space through appropriate traffic management measures, vehicle routing and use of technology.
- To make local improvements to junctions and roads within the town to help reduce delays and traffic congestion.
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Strategy and schemes
Witney is classed as one of Oxfordshire's larger towns as it has population of around 25,000. It will receive significant growth of around 1,500 new homes between 2011 and 2026. The town had a strategy before, however an area transport strategy has been developed for this town under the third Local Transport Plan 3.
Current schemes:
Cycle parking
A review of existing and potential locations for cycle parking across Witney is underway with the aim of providing good quality cycle stands to encourage cycling. This work is being undertaken with West Oxfordshire District Council and Witney Bicycle User Group.
A40/Downs Road Junction
We are working with West Oxfordshire District Council to deliver an all movement junction on the A40 at Downs Road. West Oxfordshire District Council has identified this area as the preferred direction for further growth in the town in their Draft Core Strategy, known as the West Witney Strategic Development Area (land north of Range Road and east of Downs Road).
Future schemes:
Ducklington Lane junction
To the south of Witney town centre the junction of Ducklington Lane with Station Lane and Thorney Leys experiences delays associated with congestion as a result of high traffic flows. Consequently, we now propose to construct a roundabout at this junction to replace the existing traffic signals. This is shown to be the most effective means to manage high growth traffic flows and allow traffic to move efficiently through this busy junction.
Woodgreen pedestrian and cycle scheme
There are proposals to create a good quality shared use pedestrian and cycle path between Woodgreen School and Newland. A path along this route already exists (emerging onto Newland near the existing zebra crossing by the Church Lane junction), although it is currently of poor quality and can get quite muddy after prolonged periods of rain.
An upgraded route would be particularly beneficial to those walking/cycling to school from the Newland/Cogges/Madley Park areas and also any residents on the Madley Park estate wishing to travel to the bus stops on Newlands or to the town centre via the Cogges footpath.
Air Quality Management Area (AQMA)
On 1 March 2005 West Oxfordshire District Council declared an Air Quality Management Area (AQMA) in Bridge Street, Witney as this area did not achieve the objectives set out in the National Air Quality Strategy for the nitrogen dioxide annual mean concentration.
For the Witney AQMA a range of measures were developed by West Oxfordshire District Council and Oxfordshire County Council and these are put forward in the document Draft Air Quality Action Plan - Bridge Street, Witney, Oxfordshire (pdf format, 9 MB) which can be found on the West Oxfordshire District Council Air Quality webpage.
Past schemes:
To view the Witney Integrated Transport Strategy and Land Use Study (WITLUS) documents and schemes that have been delivered, please see history of Witney Area Transport Strategy below.
Witney is classed as one of Oxfordshire's larger towns as it has population of around 25,000. It will receive significant growth of around 1,500 new homes between 2011 and 2026. The town had a strategy before, however an area transport strategy has been developed for this town under the third Local Transport Plan 3.
View information about proposals for the Cogges Link Road.
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History of transport strategy for Witney
The first Witney Integrated Transport and Land Use Study (WITLUS) was completed in 2003. Since 2006, any implementation issues have been picked up by Witney’s Traffic Advisory Committee.
You can view the strategy and schemes that form the Witney Integrated Transport and Land Use Study below:
Implemented schemes:
Many of the schemes detailed within WITLUS have now been implemented, these include:
2010 schemes
- Welch Way zebra crossing (between Woodford Way and High Street junctions)
2008 schemes
- Cogges Hill Road, Witney: narrowing west of Oxlease junction.
- Welch Way/Ducklington Lane roundabout: Welch Way splitter island.
- Welch Way traffic calming
2007 schemes
2006 schemes
- Witan Way pedestrian crossing
- Creation of Woodford Way
- Woodford Way cycle route
- Hailey Road pedestrian
2005 schemes
- Downs Road/Burford Road junction improvements
- Langdale Gate crossing
- Ducklington Lane cycleway
- Station Lane cycle link
- Ducklington Lane to Henry Box school cycleway
- Wood Green school signage improvements
2004 schemes
- Newland/Oxford Hill cycle route
2003 schemes
- Curbridge Road toucan crossing
- Newland pelican crossing
- Oxford Hill Zebra crossing
- Tower Hill pelican crossing
- Mill Street toucan crossing
- Burford Way cycleway
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