ANGRY protestors have said life has become miserable on roads within LTNs.
Opponents to low traffic neighbourhoods (LTNs) held placards and chanted before Oxfordshire County Council’s full meeting today.
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A petition was delivered to the local authority by Fazal Hussain, of the LTN Smart Changes Group, who said at the meeting: “Life has become miserable for local residents in the Cowley ward as well as the rest of East Oxford.
“Local residents feel let down by local authorities and suffer silently.
“It seems that East Oxford is deliberately targeted as an experimental test ground.”
Among the protestors outside county hall was Saj Malik, an Oxford city councillor for the Temple Cowley ward.
He told the Oxford Mail: “Lots of bollards have been vandalised, which is showing a message to the council.
“The county council is highly underestimating people’s feelings.
“Being here is about sending a message to all the county councillors.
“People do care about the environment but at the moment, they’re suffering.”
Niaz Mohammed, the owner of taxi firm Royal Cars, said: “It’s so frustrating – you get up in the morning and find your cars are getting stuck in traffic.
“We used to be able to cover the Cowley area in five or 10 minutes but now you can’t get through the traffic and it becomes a half an hour journey.”
Health concerns were raised by Asad Butt, who has lived in Cowley Road for 35 years.
He said: “Me and my two children are asthmatic, and now our breathing has got worse so we’re using our inhalers more.
“One inhaler would last two months but now I’m using it in the morning and before bed – I’m going through an inhaler a week.
“My health is my main concern – it’s impacting me and my children.”
The way public consultations have operated is a problem for Mohammed Nawaz.
He said: “We don’t have enough information on LTNs and the impact on East Oxford.
“My journey to the John Radcliffe or Churchill Hospital used to be 25 minutes, but now it’s 45 minutes – this is while the prices of fuel are going up.
“With the consultations, not all people can get online.”
LTNs have been widely condemned for displacing traffic from area to another, with Morrell Avenue resident Maggie Brown ‘concerned with increased fumes’ and Shakil Akhtar, a taxi driver for 32 years, saying he can ‘taste the toxic air’ where he lives.
Mrs Brown added: “All the traffic is just being pushed onto the Plain and with the accident there recently, I won’t be getting on a bike again.”
Read more from this author
This story was written by Liam Rice, he joined the team in 2019 as a multimedia reporter.
Liam covers politics, travel and transport. He occasionally covers Oxford United.
Get in touch with him by emailing: Liam.rice@newsquest.co.uk
Follow him on Twitter @OxMailLiamRice
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