Oxford has long been a city that knows how to move. From John Fell, a pioneer and the Dean of Christ Church who established our first train link to London in the 1600s, to Frank Johnson’s establishment of the Oxford Bus Company in 1881, and Sir Alec Issigonis, the Oxford graduate who designed the iconic Mini.
We are the most cycle friendly city in the UK. We are known for beautiful walks and, in the past, for our accessible buses and vibrant streets bustling with life.
Yet today, Oxfordshire County Council threatens this proud heritage, steering our city in reverse.
Picture a busy morning in East Oxford: ambulances trapped behind £160,000 bollards, unable to reach emergencies promptly. Imagine local businesses watching their customers vanish, choked by increased congestion from poorly planned road closures. Envision the £51 million park-and-ride in Eynsham, eerily silent and unused—its gates shut, not scheduled to open until at least 2027.
These scenes aren't hypothetical; they're Oxfordshire's reality today.
As a beautiful green city, we can agree that reduced traffic and pollution is a good thing. However, the Council’s policies are having the opposite effect. The Council's Low Traffic Neighbourhoods (LTNs) and traffic filters were marketed to residents as a panacea, with the promise of safer streets and cleaner air. But instead, the schemes have delivered the opposite. The reality, as many predicted, has been to cost lives because ambulances can’t move freely around our City, enhance congestion and thereby enhance emissions.
Recent surveys of 90 low-traffic neighbourhoods by The Times found that locals opposed the schemes in 87 percent of cases where polling was conducted. This essentially matches what I have experienced when knocking on doors and speaking to people who live and work here: The most frequently cited complaint is that of increased commuting times. In late March, the OCC took the extraordinary decision to ignore altogether public responses to a proposal seeking to expand 20mph zones in Bicester. In this case, 69 percent of respondents objected to the proposal, with only 14 percent supportive. Is this what local democracy truly is?
Residents have had to contend with worsening traffic which has threatened access to vital public services including schools and hospitals. While campaigning, I have spoken with parents who have had to leave their houses up to an hour earlier than planned now that the Council’s throttling of East Oxford and blocking of South Oxford at Botley Road, force more and more cars into fewer and fewer roads. Business owners have had to grapple with the 'Oxford premium'—forced to pay extra to attract employees willing to endure Oxfordshire’s manufactured traffic nightmare.
The Council’s reckless spending, missed financial deadlines, ballooning debt, and inefficient governance are paid for by residents facing ever-increasing council tax bills -now among the highest in the country. Despite this, following a February budget meeting, the OCC voted to increase council tax by the maximum allowed by Government: 4.99%.
Enough is enough.
Local democracy should mean listening, responding, and delivering results—not squandering millions on ideological experiments at the expense of real lives and livelihoods. Public consultations must matter. Accountability shouldn't be an afterthought.
That's why I advocate holding monthly face-to-face and online meetings with residents, business leaders, public workers, and community members. Putting the community at the heart of decision-making. We deserve transparency, clarity, and accountability - hallmarks of genuine democratic governance.
In an upcoming post, I will go into further detail around five key pledges I am making to you, the voter. I look forward to seeing how these land and discussing them further.
This May 1st, Oxfordshire faces a pivotal choice. Will we continue allowing party ideology to throttle our city and clog up its arteries, or will we reclaim our voice? Independent candidates like myself offer a genuine alternative: responsive, transparent governance focused and delivering practical solutions, not empty gestures.
On election day, choose independence. Choose accountability. Choose change. For residents of Summertown and Walton Manor, vote Beer for Oxfordshire—because our community deserves better.
