Who has the freedom to use the roads, asks active travel campaigner

On February 18, about 2,000 people descended on Oxford to protest for freedom and against traffic filters.

There appeared to be slogans of climate change denial, anti-vax, anti-semitism and racism as well, but we’ll leave those for others. What concerns us here is their view of ‘freedom’.

As American JB Finch said in 1882 ‘your right to swing your arm leaves off where my right not to have my nose struck begins’, and as we examine it, their view of freedom is a selfish and destructive one.

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Start by looking at the traffic. Lots of it, isn’t there. Freedom to drive results in traffic jams every day, and so people lose their freedom to move, stuck in queues of their own creation.

These people exercising their ‘freedom’ also take freedom from people in the 32% of Oxford households with no car and others who aren’t driving.

Because of traffic increases, bus services have slowed to 8-10mph in the city, slower than a bicycle. Because this increases costs, bus companies have had to reduce some services.

Two-thirds of Britons consider the roads too dangerous to cycle, removing their freedom to choose transport that is free of high fuel, service and environmental costs. Children have lost the freedom of independent travel that I enjoyed in the traffic-light 70s and early 80s. In many places it’s even hard to cross the road.

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For some, the loss of freedom is even more severe.

In 2020, Ella Kissi-Debrah was the first person to have air pollution recorded as a cause on her death certificate. She died aged nine.

Her mother now campaigns to reduce air pollution.

The ways that cars make us less active contribute to the one in six deaths, 100,000 a year across the UK that are linked to physical inactivity.

And, in the 10 years to 2021, we’ve seen 17,000 road casualties in Oxfordshire, with 258 fatalities.

I’m not saying that everyone should stop driving, but there’s a balance here and we need to be aware of the costs and the damage as well as the benefits that people gain.

So what to do when more people want to drive than there is space for?

The current ‘laissez faire’ approach only works for people with time to burn and really messes things up for buses and the small fraction of people who are reliant on cars.

Instead, you might wonder if it is better to prioritise certain users (e.g. those disabled people that rely on cars, buses that use space efficiently) and then share out the remaining road with an allowance, so the traffic can flow.

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By reducing traffic overall, it would be more appealing to walk, wheelchair or cycle - all of which cause less congestion and harm. Just like traffic lights at a junction, by putting in place restrictions, an approach like this brings a fairer balance of freedoms. You may have already recognised it as the traffic filter plan for Oxford.

So when you hear someone talking about freedom, ask yourself… ‘Is this true freedom, that doesn’t take from anyone else?’ Like cycling down a quiet lane, or across the city - you’re not using resources, you’re not causing delays.

Or, is it a selfish view of freedom that puts personal convenience ahead of the loss of freedom for others?

To help children experience the freedom of cycling in a safe environment, even before our roads are fully engineered,

Oxford like many cities hosts ‘Kidical Mass’ events where a mass of cyclists, including experienced ride leaders, creates a safe space for children to ride. Cyclox and partner organisations are holding Kidical Mass events on March 26, May 7 and September 24, 2023 - details at www.cyclox.org, we’d love to see you there.

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This story was written by Andy Ffrench, he joined the team more than 20 years ago and now covers community news across Oxfordshire.

Get in touch with him by emailing: Andy.ffrench@newsquest.co.uk

Follow him on Twitter @OxMailAndyF