IT’S high time Oxford’s cross-town routes were opened up properly to cyclists. It’s a no-brainer to make cycling as easy and convenient as possible because the alternatives, cars and buses, cause congestion and air pollution.

It is currently a real nuisance trying to work out how to get from east to west Oxford legally. It shouldn’t be and it needn’t be, but it is – because Queen Street is closed to cyclists. Queen Street matters to cyclists because the alternative routes are excessively circuitous and confusing.

Historically, Queen Street was busier. It had two lanes of buses (those parked at bus stops and those overtaking), and lots of pedestrians, so cyclists were excluded at the busiest time, 10am-6pm. Now that there are no buses stopping and fewer buses cruising along the street, there is actually no need to ban cyclists between those times.

The Dutch (the gods of urban transport planning) have a measure that tells them what density of pedestrian footfall in streets means that cyclists should or should not be allowed.

Queen Street is wide and the pedestrian density low enough to permit cycling, the Dutch would say. The reason cyclists were excluded no longer pertains, with fewer buses now and none in the future.

There’s a popular notion that bikes are a menace to pedestrians. This is a very sad misconception. Although there is undoubtedly a perceived risk, there is no precedent of cyclists killing or seriously injuring pedestrians in Oxfordshire. It’s motor vehicles that do the damage. Although some pedestrians fear bicycles, they’d actually be a lot better off if they kept their eyes on cars, buses and lorries, which do kill and injure.

To encourage cycling, you need to make it easy to see where to go. The obvious route along Queen Street has some incredibly complicated signs at each end which say (I am told) that from 6pm-10am you can cycle two ways in Queen Street between Carfax and St Ebbe’s Street, but you can cycle along the section of road by the Westgate and the library at any time in both directions, as this is technically New Road.

While three modes is a crowd, two is good company. There will be ample room for pedestrians and cyclists to mingle and merge safely. Now there are so few buses, the ban on cycles makes little sense.

Queen Street’s daytime closure to bikes is a problem because the alternatives are long detours.

Cycling up High Street from the east, you have two options. You can either go via Turl Street, Broad Street and George Street, which is slow because of the amount of pedestrians and dangerous with all the buses. Or you can go to Carfax, head several hundred metres down St Aldate’s, go west along Brewer Street (because Pembroke Street is one way west-east) and then up St Ebbe’s Street to Queen Street.

You are then allowed to cycle from St Ebbe’s (if you succeed in decoding the signs) and down the hill to the station and beyond.

The sensible thing to do would be to make Queen Street available to cyclists 24/7 (with the possible exception of Saturdays 10am-4pm); and to make Pembroke Street two-way for cyclists for those who wish to avoid the bustle of Queen Street and who’d prefer a quicker route.