'Outraged' residents decorate burned Cowley LTN bollard

The planter, acting as a barrier to traffic within the Cowley Low Traffic Neighbourhood scheme, appears to have been set alight in the early hours of Sunday morning.

Police are currently investigating how the fire began.

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But in the wake of the fire, local residents rallied together to decorate the charred planter with children’s drawings, painted signs, garden gnomes and new flowers.

A group of approximately 20 people showed up to the traffic filter on Sunday afternoon at 4pm to take part in what they called a ‘spontaneous community action’, mere hours after news of the fire broke.

Katie Mills, who lives nearby, said: “It was really heartwarming that something that had begun in quite a difficult way with the fire ended like this. It felt like a really positive community-building exercise.”

Ms Mills added she thought it was important that the community came together to do something ‘positive’ after the fire because the Low Traffic Neighbourhoods had resulted in polarised views.

Notes left by children on the burned LTN planter. Picture: Charlie Hicks

Charlie Hicks, the Labour county councillor for Cowley elected in the recent local elections, said many people living in the road, which is near Florence Park, had felt ‘sad and outraged that something like this could happen in our neighbourhood’.

Mr Hicks added: “It’s an example of the amazing community spirit we have here in Cowley and why I am so proud to live here and represent the area. 

“These values of resilience, togetherness and community spirit are what have seen us through the pandemic and I believe will take us forward to building a better post-Covid society.”

A note left on the Rymer’s Lane LTN planter after the fire. Picture: Charlie Hicks

Notes left by children on the burned LTN planter. Picture: Charlie Hicks

The county councillor also invited everyone living in Cowley to take part in a consultation, a kind of public survey about the LTNs, which is available on Oxfordshire County Council’s website.

On Sunday, Thames Valley Police confirmed they had been called to the planter at 00.45am in the morning by the local fire and rescue service.

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They added an investigation is currently ‘ongoing’ and no arrests had been made.
The police are appealing for information, and anyone who can assist should call 101, quoting reference number 43210245601.

A spokesman for the Oxfordshire Fire and Rescue service added the ‘bollard’ was extinguished using a hose reel jet and said firefighters departed the scene at 1.09am, having arrived at 0.38am.

Painted signs decorating the burned Rymers Lane LTN planter. Picture: Charlie Hicks

Low Traffic Neighbourhoods are being trialled in Cowley on a six-month basis.

The schemes use bollards or planters to transform former through-roads into makeshift cul-de-sacs, preventing drivers using them as short cuts from main roads.

A gnome decorating the burned Rymers Lane LTN planter. Picture: Charlie Hicks

The LTNs have proved controversial in other parts of the UK.

And a petition is currently doing the rounds in Oxford with thousands of signatures signed opposing the scheme, though many signatories do not actually live in the city.

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