Idea should not have got past planning stage

I hope that many people will let the council know their feelings about this foolish plan. These are my opinions: This is a completely mad idea which should never have got to the planning stage.

Firstly, this area is notoriously congested very heavily at many times of day. The new Oxford Parkway rail station will inevitably add to the local congestion. Building a new road joining the A40 and A44 will only increase the congestion.

Building businesses here will add to the congestion. Are businesses really needed so desperately anyway? There are plenty of other business parks around Oxfordshire which can be expanded, or new ones developed. People working at the businesses proposed for the Northern Gateway will obviously want to buy up the new houses, so Oxford’s drastic housing shortage will get no better.

The plan includes building a new hotel, but there are already three hotels in the area (The Oxford Hotel, Holiday Inn and Travelodge). Oxford may need more hotels but it is ridiculous to have so many in one area.

As usual with new plans, the language is chosen to make them sound better than they possibly can be. The name “Northern Gateway” supposedly suggests a grand entrance to Oxford but this will hardly happen if the newcomer encounters long queues of traffic pumping out pollution. The plan includes grandiose but absurd statements like “It is proposed to restrict traffic speeds to 30mph in order to enhance the sense of arrival”. Poppycock. Presumably the council will lay on frequent processions of decorated carriages to enhance the sense of arrival.
Tony Augarde
Carlton Road Oxford

• Do you want alerts delivered straight to your phone via our WhatsApp service? Text NEWS or SPORT or NEWS AND SPORT, depending on which services you want, and your full name to 07767 417704. Save our number into your phone's contacts as Oxford Mail WhatsApp and ensure you have WhatsApp installed.
  

Today’s letters