I am writing concerning Oxford railway station and Botley Road bridge.

For decades bus operators have had to buy special, low-profile double-deckers to negotiate this bridge safely. Your archives include photos of several accidents in past decades when a driver forgot he had a full-height bus, drove down Botley Road and his bus either got stuck under the bridge or tore its roof off. In 2017, the road under the bridge will be deepened.

Operators should at last be able to use full-height double-deckers throughout Oxford.

Oxford Mail:

A busy Oxford station

The station forecourt is too small for buses from all parts of Oxford to serve it. Stops in Frideswide Square are over 200 metres from the station entrance: too far for some passengers with disabilities and hard on passengers with heavy luggage, shopping or small children.

Re-developing the station on its current site may include moving buses to a new larger forecourt in what is now the station car park south of Botley Road.

This would increase walking distances for those buses that terminate at the station.

In 2005–06, Arup presented options for a bigger Oxford rail station.

They included either enlarging the current station or building a new one at Oxpens with a larger, integrated bus hub. Oxpens would have cost more because it required new signalling, but now Network Rail will resignal through Oxford anyway.

Oxford Civic Society therefore argues that Oxpens is better value as well as better integrated. Network Rail has yet to justify why it disagrees.

Hugh Jaeger

Bus Users Oxford

Park Close

Oxford