Witney High Street and Market Square enhancements scheme

A scheme to deliver public realm improvements that support and maintain the new traffic arrangement on Witney High Street and Market Square.  

Now that there are fewer cars travelling through the High Street and Market Square, we can look again at how road space could be reallocated to make the town centre a better place to spend time for shopping or leisure.

The improvements aim to complement the town’s history and character but would also help to improve the look and feel of Witney for visitors and for those arriving by walking, cycling or public transport.

About the improvements

The project began with a £1.98m grant from the UK Government’s active travel fund, which was specifically allocated to support active travel (walking, wheeling, cycling, and buses) in the town centre.

In 2023, we asked local people and businesses to help us design a plan for making enhancements to Witney High Street and Market Square by sharing what was important to them and what active travel things they would like to improve to help achieve the project objectives:

• Enhance public spaces while protecting the town’s history and character
• Support local businesses and the markets
• Make it easier and more enjoyable to walk, wheel and cycle
• Upgrade access to public transport
• Improve safety for all users

In 2024, we then asked local people and businesses to review the draft plans designed from their feedback in the first stage. This feedback, together with the completion of site surveys and discussions with West Oxfordshire District Council and Witney Town Council since the start of the scheme, has helped finalise the design for the works to be delivered. 

People told us the improvements they wanted to see delivered in the project:

• Improved footway surfacing
• More trees
• More plants and gardens
• More seating
• More information on history and heritage

Following the 2024 public consultation, further design work and technical studies were carried out to ensure the scheme is safe, accessible, and practical. 

These reviews have included independent accessibility and road safety audits, bus service assessments, underground service surveys, and ongoing engagement with local businesses and transport operators.

The scheme is providing

• new seating areas where people can sit and socialise.
• new trees giving shelter and boosting air quality
• resurfacing of approximately 2000m2 of existing footways and creating over 1000m2 of new footway space
• 10 marked disabled persons parking places]
• flexible loading arrangements for businesses within the town centre
• a new, additional bus stop for community transport. Taxi access will be permitted in the shared space after 5pm on weekdays and after 2pm on Saturdays, with a 16m taxi bay provided at all times.
• a new traffic priority arrangement for the High Street/Welch Way junction, including a central island to support cyclists making right turns

Next steps

Construction for the Witney High Street and Market Square project is due to start in early May 2026, and the works are scheduled for completion in November (subject to weather conditions and other factors that are beyond the council's control). 

The works will be completed in phases, starting on the western side of the street, with traffic movements restricted to southbound only during this phase, with works then switching to the eastern side of the street, where traffic will only be permitted northbound on the High Street and Market Square between the Corn Street and Welch Way junctions.

Further information on construction phasing and traffic management arrangements during the works can be found on the council's engagement Let's Talk Oxfordshire portal.

Timescales

Contact us

If you would like to know more about the project, you can contact us by email: witneyhighstreet@oxfordshire.gov.uk , or by writing to:

Witney High Street Project
Oxfordshire County Council
County Hall
New Road
Oxford
OX1 1ND.