Sir, G. King is quite right to draw attention to pedestrianising Queen Street as part of the redevelopment of the Westgate Centre (Letters, September 22).
Alas we can't just wave a magic wand and spirit the buses away from Queen Street. Fifty per cent of all journeys to the centre of Oxford are made by bus. The success of the city as a commercial, business and leisure centre is vital. The buses keep the heart of Oxford beating.
Queen Street does three different, but important, jobs: it provides the kerb space for bus stops (which the Castle Street area will replace), it allows passengers access to the heart of the city, and is also part of an important turn-around loop for buses to and from East Oxford.
More people live east of Oxford than to the west and so there will always be more services to and from there. Their passengers need to be able to access the city centre and the buses need somewhere to turn. It is this issue that remains unresolved. There have been suggestions about using part of Worcester Street car park as a turn-round, but this has brought some criticism. The problem remains to be solved before the goal of a traffic-free Queen Street can be achieved.
Philip Kirk, Managing director, Oxford Bus Company
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