What you need to know

The work that we are doing at the Plain will remove one of the main cycling barriers into and out of Oxford city centre. The Plain is a busy five-arm roundabout with high bus flows and a history of cyclist casualties. It is also off-putting for less experienced riders. The county council is embarking on a project to improve the attractiveness and safety of the roundabout for cyclists and pedestrians by reducing the width of the circulatory carriageway and tightening the entrances onto the roundabout.

How we’re getting on with the work

The first closure on The Plain Roundabout has reopened, providing access to St Clement’s Street from the roundabout. Footway works outside of Clems Night Club has been completed.

Work outside of Sainsbury’s has also been completed and the new loading bay will be opened this week.

Footway work will begin this week adjacent to Magdalen College School, with pedestrians being relocated onto the newly completed footway adjacent to the carriageway.

The second closure is underway, restricting access to The Plain from St Clement’s Street with a diversion in place via Dawson Street. This will continue to be in place until Sunday 15 February 2015.

The new green light for cyclists at Longwall Street has been activated, providing cyclists with a five second head start over all other traffic heading east at the junction. This is a first for Oxfordshire, making improvements for cyclists as they proceed east over Magdalene Bridge. 

What’s next?

The third closure will involve closing Cowley Road at the junction of The Plain Roundabout, in both directions. This will begin on Monday 16 February 2015 and will be in place until Sunday 8 March 2015. During this period, there will be diversions in place. These are listed below.

• Vehicles into the city will be diverted to Iffley Road and then Temple Street.
•  Vehicles out of the city will be diverted to Circus Street then Iffley Road.
•  Cyclists into and out of the city are diverted via Dawson Street and St Clement’s Street.

Local bus companies will advise of closures to bus stops.

Work will also start on Cowley Place during school half-term from Saturday 14 February 2015 through to Sunday 22 February 2015. Traffic will be able to enter Cowley Place under control of “Stop/Go” boards in day-time. Give-way priority will be set between 4.30pm-7.30am.

During the work, access to all properties will be maintained, and we will contact individuals directly about how we work outside of their property.
 

For further details and information about this scheme, please visit The Plain Project Page

For live travel information and our journey planner, visit Oxfordshire Travel Choices