Walton Street public realm improvements, Oxford
A highway and public realm scheme to improve active travel and enhance the street environment
About the improvements
The project aims to improve the experience of walking, wheeling and cycling on Walton Street, while enhancing the street environment and supporting access for residents, businesses and visitors.
We aim to:
- Improve conditions for walking, wheeling and cycling.
- Enhance the public realm
- Make the area safer and more accessible, while balancing the needs of everyone who uses the street
- Help support Oxfordshire County Council's wider transport and place-making objectives
- Provide a street environment that works well for residents, businesses and visitors
Why we are investing here
The project supports the objectives of Oxfordshire County Council's Local Transport and Connectivity Plan [link to https://www.oxfordshire.gov.uk/sites/default/files/file/roads-and-transport-connecting-oxfordshire/LocalTransportandConnectivityPlan.pdf] (LTCP) , including encouraging sustainable travel, improving accessibility and creating healthier, more attractive places. We have received S106 funding to invest on improving travel in this area.
What you can expect
The project scope includes:
- Improved pedestrian crossing facilities
- Additional footway space
- Highway improvements at the Walton Street /Great Clarendon Street junction
- Subject to consultation, removing and relocating some pay and display parking spaces to provide a bay for on-street e-ike and e-scooter parking and to accommodate the footway widening
- Extending the existing raised table (with zebra crossing) on Walton Street to the west of Great Clarendon Street and into the Great Clarendon Street junction.
- Public realm and greening enhancements
Timescales
We are consulting on the scheme between 15 October and 13 November 2026. You can read more details about the project and share your feedback on our Let’s Talk platform.
A report will be presented to a Cabinet Member for Decision meeting at the end of the year to decide on whether to proceed to deliver the proposals and if any changes should be made to what was originally proposed.
Minimising the impact
If the proposals are approved, the traffic management arrangements during construction will be confirmed once a preferred contractor has been appointed. We will try to minimise any impacts as far as is reasonably practicable. Further details will be available closer to the start of construction.
How it is being funded
The Walton Street project is being funded through Section 106 developer contributions. Section 106 funding is secured through planning agreements. The planning agreement sets out what the funding must be spent on – such as on specific road improvements.
Next steps
A design has been finalised using feedback from stakeholders, site and highways information. It is proposed that the improvements would be built in 2027, depending on the outcomes of the Cabinet Member for Decision meeting,
Contact us
If you would like to know more, you can contact us by email - watonstreetproject@oxfordshire.gov.uk