Council approves 20mph plan for town's roads

A 20mph speed limit currently in place in a town centre is set to be extended to cover the majority of residential roads.

The decision to expand the 20mph zones in Bicester was made at a meeting of Oxfordshire County Council on Wednesday.

The council said the proposals followed road safety concerns raised by Bicester Town Council, and had previously been deferred to allow more local feedback.

A public consultation launched in January found 69% of people who responded objected to the plans.

There were 704 responses via an online survey, comprising of 485 objections (69%), 96 partially supporting (14%), 97 supporting (14%), and 26 non-objections (4%).

A limit of 30mph will be retained on arterial roads, while a 40-mile-per-hour limit will stay in place on Bicester's ring road.

Oxfordshire County Council said: "Research has shown that every 1-mph reduction in average urban speeds can result in a 6% fall in the number of casualties."

"It's also been shown that you are seven times more likely to survive if you are hit by a car driving at 20mph, than if you are hit at 30mph."

"As is the case with all 20mph schemes, the situation in Bicester will be monitored and evaluated and can be amended at a later date," the spokesperson added.

Funding for the change is provided by Oxfordshire County Council's 20mph speed limit project.

Other Oxfordshire towns and villages have seen their speed limits reduced as part of a three-year programme, including Witney, Banbury, Thame, Wallingford, Abingdon, Henley and Wantage.

You can follow BBC Oxfordshire on Facebook, X (Twitter), or Instagram.