The sheriff and former mayor of Oxford is the second labour councillor to declare his opposition to the Low Traffic Neighbourhood (LTN) scheme.

Mark Lygo, who is also county councillor for Marston and Northway, described the LTNs as "an experiment" and said that "strength comes from knowing when to stop".

Mr Lygo had publicly posted online on Monday about his opposition to the LTNs in Oxford. 

He said: “Time to rethink Oxford’s LTN’s. It simply isn’t working.”

Speaking to the Oxford Mail, Mr Lygo then shared his beliefs on the damage the traffic reduction measures are having on public transport.

READ MORE: Leading Oxford city councillor hits out at 'madness' of LTNs

He said: “It’s time for a review, and a different approach to achieve our aims.

"Most residents do not feel listened to, and this has done damage to all councillors’ and county officers’ reputations – often unjustified.

“Challenges around congestions and impacts on bus timings are serious issues, and they require serious solutions.

“What is the potential legal liability of the council towards the bus companies, in light of the fact the council is required to improve journey times for buses, under the conditions of electric bus grant funding arrangements.

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“LTNs have made bus journey times in Oxford considerably worse and a call-in is needed to have a sensible, measured and honest discussion within our communities.”

The councillor was commenting before the county council's cabinet decided on Tuesday to make LTNs in Divinity Road, St Mary’s and St Clement’s permanent.

And Mr Lygo’s statement comes just one month after another prominent labour city councillor hit out at the “madness” of the LTNs.

Oxford Mail: An LTN in East Oxford An LTN in East Oxford (Image: Photo: Oxford Mail)Linda Smith, the city council’s cabinet member for housing took to social media in September to share her grievances.

She said: "I needed to take a teenager and his large desktop PC to the excellent Chatterbox Repairs on Cowley Road this afternoon.

"It took 90 minutes to drive there and back from Marston. Madness.

"Some routes through the conglomeration of LTNs are needed to allow the traffic to move."

 

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This story was written by Matthew Norman, he joined the team in 2022 as a Facebook community reporter.

Matthew covers Bicester and focuses on finding stories from diverse communities.

Get in touch with him by emailing: Matthew.norman@newsquest.co.uk

Follow him on Twitter: @OxMailMattN1