American-style yellow buses to transport Oxford schoolchildren are being suggested by Conservatives to cut congestion in the city.

Theresa May MP, the party's shadow secretary of state for environment and transport, joined Oxfordshire Tories on April 14 to launch a campaign to tackle traffic problems caused by the school run.

She and Amanda McLean, the Tory parliamentary candidate for Oxford West and Abingdon, said they wanted members of the public to suggest alternative ways of getting children to school.

Their own ideas include school buses to pick up children close to their homes. The scheme is already working successfully in Runnymede, Surrey, and Calder- dale, West Yorkshire.

Another suggestion is using the city's five park-and-ride sites as pick-up and drop-off points for school buses.

Mrs May said: "Congestion is a particular problem in Oxford and I have thought for some time now that the way to tackle it could lie with issues of transporting children to school. What we need is a proper discussion and debate about this.

"Parents travel short distances to take their children to school to ensure they get there safely. We need a scheme that would capture their confidence."

Mrs McLean said once suggestions had been made, a policy would be drawn up and submitted to Oxfordshire County Council. She said: "The city's economy is being affected by the level of congestion. There has got to be a better way forward.

"We obviously need to look at proposals in detail, but we are throwing this open for debate and hope people will take the chance to have a say."

The proposals came in the same week that shadow education secretary Tim Yeo announced a future Tory government would scrap admission policies which see schools favouring children who live nearby. Critics said the plan could mean children having to travel greater distances to get to school.

Graham Jones, chairman of Summertown and Wolvercote Conservatives, said last year's reorganisation of Oxford schools from a three to two-tier system had already increased the school run for some families.

But he said if the right ideas were put in place to provide safe transport for children, there could be a real step forward.