Traffic Flows in Brize A serious problem that has for too long been overlooked by Planners, the WODC and the OCC. All statistical data is taken from figures published by the OCC

A Growing Problem Traffic flow through Brize is a result of: the location of the biggest RAF base in the UK. The development of Carterton from a small village into a town. And the relative position of the two; there is no natural route to & from the south to either except through Brize. The preferred route between Carterton & Witney is not via Monahan Way & the A40, but through Brize. Any major development in Carterton will result in more traffic.

Drowning in Traffic Brize already suffers from some of the highest traffic flows in the county. As there is very little local employment any major development must increase the number of commuter vehicles passing through the village. This is Station Rd, the principal route from Carterton to Bampton and all destinations south. There are no plans to relieve this route by construction of a bypass.

Traffic Flows in Brize The chart uses the latest data available. NB this data is for 12 hour periods only. Clearly these values would be much higher over a full 24 hours. What these figures do not show is the congestion on the narrow village roads and the risks presented to pedestrians, both adults & children, due to the traffic and the narrow discontinuous pavements that run through Brize. NB Monahan Way (5788 vehicles 7am – 7pm) was built to give Carterton direct access to the A40 but appears to carry less traffic than either Manor Rd or Carterton Rd. Minster RdWitney Rd Manor Rd Carterton Rd Station Rd Brize Road Layout

Brize is busier than…. This chart is shown for comparison. These are well known locations. Note that except for Burford Bridge, all these roads are reasonably wide and traffic can pass in both directions without risk of collision. This data is for 24 hour periods. Allowing that night-time traffic to be 20% of the daytime count then all of these are less than for Carterton Rd in Brize.

A Quick Summary Brize is a residential village with narrow roads, none of which are classified, but is subjected to exceptionally high traffic flows. It has discontinuous pavements which are a hazard to pedestrians, especially children en route to school. There is a high volume of commercial vehicles including HGVs, the latter have difficulty passing each other and at times mount the pavement. There are no traffic calming measures on either Manor Rd or Carterton Rd and drivers frequently exceed the speed limit.

Possible Solutions 1.In the city of Oxford this road system would almost certainly qualify for a 20mph speed limit, HGV restrictions and extensive traffic calming. This is considered to be very least that should be done. 2.Linking Monahan Way to Witney Rd, Brize, would remove a proportion of the current traffic from the village, but would do nothing to reduce traffic heading south. 3.South bound traffic needs radical action, a new road skirting the base linking Carterton Rd (opposite the lay- bys) with Station Rd adjacent to the Sewage Works. 4.Only the combination of 2 & 3 would produce a real solution to the traffic problems that exist in Brize