'Super buses' may be on streets

New so-called "super buses" could be seen on the streets of Oxford under plans to pedestrianise the city centre.

The county council announced the scheme as part of measures to make the city safer and more visitor-friendly.

But it also wants to reduce the number of buses along main routes to create a "better environment".

This could mean using buses that carry four times the normal number of passengers, or creating a new terminus near the city centre.

Under the plans bus routes would be diverted, pavements would be widened and the road landscaped.

George Street and Magdalen Street could also be pedestrianised in 2010, which could encourage outdoor street cafes and restaurants.

Bus companies recognised that enhancements can be made but warned that good access to the heart of the city must be maintained.

Stagecoach in Oxfordshire said it was "receptive to any proposals to enhance the attractiveness of Oxford city centre".

The company also said Oxford had the highest level of bus use of any similar-sized city in the UK and it was essential bus users were not disadvantaged by bus stops being moved to remote and inconvenient locations.

A transport spokesperson for the county council said: "This could mean significantly fewer vehicles not only in the city centre but throughout the routes into the city from the east."

Another possibility would be to create a bus terminus, east of the centre either at The Plain or London Place.

The council spokesperson added: "There appears to be scope to create an appropriately landscaped terminus.

"Travel onwards into the city centre would then be by a very high-capacity transfer bus or on foot, or possibly by a hired bike."

The county council said it was committed to the proposals but would seek views from local people and interested parties.

"There's so much bus traffic now and the High Street is so polluted, I think reducing the number of buses would only help," one bus passenger said.

Another passenger was unsure about the introduction of high-capacity buses: "I just don't know where you would put a stop for that many people. I just can't imagine walking down the street with my kids past 100 people waiting at a bus stop."

Noam Bleicher, from the Oxford branch of Bus Users UK, said: "We'd like to see some direct bus journeys into the city centre retained from all parts of the city, even if it means running bendy-buses in other parts of the city."

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