COUNCILLOR Jean Fooks uses several strong words in her letter about the city and county councils failing to work together regarding park and ride services in Oxford (Oxford Mail, October 13) but just in the wrong context for each.

I’m not referring to the petty squabbles between arrogant members of different councils, I’m talking about the single-storey car parks that are the arterial routes into and out of the city every day. It’s not just down to having to pay here and not there at all.

It was pure folly to site all five of our park and ride parks at their present locations really, wasn’t it Mrs Fooks? I mean, if they really wanted to improve transport into and out of our city, was it the wisest move for engineers to site them all at five of the most frequently clogged and congested parts of the city road and ring road network?

All it has ever done is exacerbate road congestion in those areas rather than elevate it. Other cities such as Cardiff and Cambridge, who have copied Oxford’s early example, have at least had the good sense to build relief roads first and site theirs well out of the city, in areas where congestion is not already an issue and subsequently not made far worse afterwards.

What we have is five of our worst pinch-points being forced to deal with even more traffic. Add to that the ridiculous lay-out that is now the A420 through Headington and the so called OTS and all of its 14-year-old ‘teething’ problems and everything promptly grinds to a halt, with a far too regular frequency.

Had they all been sited eight to 10 miles out of the city, perhaps at rail junctions and stations, or former airfields and MOD sites, a much better and integrated transport network for Oxfordshire as a whole could have been created. The five sites now in use could, I’m certain, be seen by the city council as ideal areas on which to build local and social housing, a much-needed commodity in our fair city, a place for people to live.

I agree with you Mrs Fooks, the situation is deplorable. As demonstrated yet again recently, Oxford is ultra-dependant on the A34 being free-running, but the highways office policies here in Oxfordshire keep adding to its volume rather than reducing it, so when disaster strikes in Weston-on-the-Green, everything stops in Cowley!

Our 24-hour bus lanes are a complete nonsense in themselves – 7-10am and 4-7pm camera enforced restrictions (as in London) would be a simple and far easier way to reduce congestion at other off-peak times. There is little logic in 33 per cent or so of our local road network being totally unused for 75 per cent of a 24-hour day, seven days a week. Question: If a heart surgeon reduces his patient’s blood-flow by 75 per cent 24-hours a day and then stands on his throat, will the patient die?

For this situation alone, some people, as you say Mrs Fooks, who are currently in authority, really should hold their heads in shame and resign. They should also, if not elected into their position of responsibility, be seeking alternative employment too! You’ve all contributed to “our” chaos in no small way Mrs Fooks!

DAVID WILLIAMS, David Walter Close, Oxford