Our plans for traffic and transport

A CGI image of the approach to the link building

This article is designed to provide an overview of our approach to on-site car parking and travel plans. Further and more detailed information can be found in our Transport Assessment and Travel Plan which were submitted as part of our planning application to create a new mental health hospital, research centre and college of the University of Oxford at Warneford Park in Headington (hybrid planning application reference: 25/01859/OUTFUL and Listed Building Consent application reference: 25/01834/LBC).

Our proposals

For our proposed development to be successful, we need a site that functions well. Minimising traffic and enhancing access is in everyone’s interests.

Under our proposals, there would be a significant increase in the level of development and activity at the site.

Currently, 705 staff are employed at the site, served by 360 car parking spaces. Around 67% of journeys to and from the site are by car, and only 33% by walking, cycling or public transport.

With our development, staff numbers would increase by almost 3 times to approximately 1,950, but car parking would increase by only 50% (an additional 186 spaces) to a total of 546 spaces. We are completely clear that this increase in car parking spaces is the highest number it will ever be – our landscaped masterplan does not allow space for extra cars on site.

As a result, 70% of staff and visitors would need to travel to and from the site by public transport, cycling or walking. It means the share of people coming by car would reduce dramatically from 67% currently to 30% at most. We are not aware of any site outside the city centre where such a dramatic mode of transport shift has been proposed.

How we will achieve this

To achieve this, we propose a physical limitation on the number of car parking spaces and a rigorous policy for allocating them.

We are also proposing the following investment in public transport and active modes of travel that will benefit all pedestrians and cyclists in Headington, not just those who visit and work at the Warneford site:

• Comprehensive redesign and reconstruction of the WOGR (Warneford Lane/Old Road/Gipsy Lane/Roosevelt Drive) junction to provide a CYCLOPS (Cycle Optimised Protected Signals) junction, which will prioritise and improve safety for pedestrians and cyclists
• Mobility and public realm improvements to the transport infrastructure on Roosvelt Drive to improve access for pedestrians, cyclists and those using public transport
• Cycle improvements on Gipsy Lane, taking cyclists off the carriageway
• Cycle improvements on Old Road
• Improved pedestrian crossing points on Warneford Lane
• Significant monetary contributions to improve bus services for the area

Further information on these improvements is detailed in the section below.

On-site facilities, such as shower and changing facilities alongside high quality bicycle storage, will make riding a bike to Warneford Park one of the primary methods of travel for people who work there.

Helping to make our roads safer

The enhanced public transport services would benefit not only the Warneford development but all those who access this part of Headington. Similarly, our proposals to enhance pedestrian cycle infrastructure would bring significant safety improvements, not only for those associated with Warneford Park, but also for those travelling in and out of the city, and also those travelling to the neighbouring Cheney School, Oxford Brookes University, and Churchill Hospital and Old Road Campus.

The rearrangement of the WOGR junction to provide a CYCLOPS arrangement will provide substantial benefits to efficiency and safety for cyclist and pedestrians. Cyclists will be taken off the carriageway, separating them from general traffic, providing safety benefits for cyclists and efficiency benefits for vehicular traffic.

They will have dedicated crossing phases in line with pedestrian crossing phases, and pedestrian crossing distances will also be reduced. Not only would this provide benefits for existing and future staff of Warneford Park, this will provide substantial benefits for existing cyclists travelling to and from the city centre and Cowley 7 days a week.

Off-carriageway cycle lanes are also proposed on Gipsy Lane and Old Road, again removing cyclists from the general traffic flow.

Except for the WOGR junction, there is currently no dedicated crossing for pedestrians on Warneford Lane. The proposals therefore include the provision of two new pedestrian crossings, improving pedestrian safety on Warneford Lane and making use of existing tarmac where possible.

Improving connections

Helping to improve bus services and connecting with other campuses

We will agree with Oxford City Council (as part of what is known as an S106 agreement) a financial contribution of around £1.7m that can be used by the council to provide improvements to ‘Eastern Arc’ bus services and frequencies – particularly on routes 100, 600 and 700, which connect Warneford to Thornhill, Eynsham, and Redbridge Park & Rides, as well as the City Centre, Witney, Kidlington, and Cowley. There is also the potential for a further contribution for bus frequency improvements to bus service 15 operated by Oxford Bus Company.

Improvements to the nearby bus stops adjacent to the site on Roosevelt Drive and Warneford Lane are proposed. This includes a proposal to relocate the northbound bus stop on Roosevelt Drive further south and within the site boundary, where there is more available width and a shelter and seating can be provided.

A new bus stop would support arrivals and departures to the proposed development and would provide much more space for passengers to wait and not block the footway.

The site’s location enables active travel connections with Old Road Campus, the Churchill and other hospitals, and with Oxford Brookes University. Connections with other campuses will be supported through potential shuttle buses or demand-responsive transport and the University and College will maintain links with other buildings across Oxford.

Parking spaces

Why we need to provide some car parking spaces

A detailed justification for the increase in car parking has been provided to the county council and city council. This has been informed by detailed staff surveys, an assessment of the projected future staffing levels and needs, and the level of active travel and public transport improvements proposed by the county council.

Any further reduction in car parking is not possible without compromising the efficient operation of this critically important development – for example, the development will have nurses, college staff and researchers working at the site, some of whom will need to travel from outside the city.

A detailed Transport Assessment has been submitted with our application which demonstrates that there would be no material difference in the operation of local junctions and no material delay at the Gypsy Lane, Old Road, Warneford Lane junction despite that junction benefitting from important pedestrian and cycle safety improvements.

With a hospital that needs to be staffed 24 hours a day, many of the people who are using the parking spaces will be working shifts and so will not be travelling at peak times. The level of impact at the adjacent junction during peak hours of 8am to 9am and 4.30pm to 5.30pm (obtained from detailed traffic surveys on the highway network) is therefore expected to equate to just one extra vehicle per road/arm during each traffic light cycle starting from 2031 (by which time other measures are intended to have reduced congestion).

Planned public transport rates

Planned public transport rates will exceed those currently achieved in Headington

The proportion of staff travelling by public transport that we are proposing for Warneford Park is far higher and more stretching than is currently achieved in the Headington area as a whole, which is not as accessible as the city centre.

At present, the county council’s data shows that only 9% of people travelling more than 5 miles to come to Headington travel by public transport. At Warneford Park we are aiming for 70% of staff/students to be walking, cycling or using public transport, of which around 37% will be by bus.

The Travel Plan for Warneford commits us to standards which far exceed those achieved in any comparable location.

We recognise that things may change in the future though – particularly if there are significant public transport improvements benefitting Headington. For this reason, we have designed the basement car park so that it can be gradually converted to other uses and we are ready to commit to a formal review to see whether car parking reductions can be achieved in the coming years. Steadily reducing parking numbers will be enabled if public transport and active travel improves.

The importance of green space

The new hospital will focus on providing modern inpatient facilities, with a strong emphasis on patient wellness and therapeutic spaces that connect with nature.

We therefore want to keep as much green space as possible including the large lawn and many mature trees on the site. Because of this, car parking would be predominantly located at basement level, clearing away large areas of current surface car parking and enabling the new development to be set within substantial landscaped grounds, and priority given to those choosing to walk and cycle.

Aligning with the Oxford City Local Plan

Policy SP22 in the Oxford Local Plan supports significant development on the Warneford site. In particular, it supports the development of a new hospital and the expansion of a range of other uses on the site including medical research, the development of academic institutional uses such as the new college and student accommodation.

Because of the scale of the new development anticipated at Warneford, unlike other Headington Hospital sites, the Local Plan does not prohibit an increase in car parking at the Warneford site. Instead, it requires us to demonstrate that the development mitigates against traffic impacts and maximises access by alternative means of transport. We have set out to do exactly that, as outlined above.

The site-specific policy for the Warneford site foresaw this scale of development and is thus worded differently from those for the other Headington hospital sites and the Old Road Campus where no additional car parking is allowed.

Consulting on our plans

During our pre-planning application phase, we engaged with local resident groups and held two public consultations, with drop-in exhibition events open to all. We have aimed to reflect feedback where possible, but the overall increase in parking spaces remains a matter of concern for Headington residents in particular, and this brief sets out how we aim to minimise the impact of this proposed increase.