Expert studies of traffic in Watlington conclude that on-street parking and HGVs significantly cause delay and congestion.
On street parking
Reports for the county, district, and parish council agree that vehicle queuing at the Couching Street / Brook Street T junction is not caused by the junction itself. The rush hour queuing is largely due to on-street parking on the western side of Couching Street. Vehicles queue back from the on-street parking into the junction and along Brook Street. This causes exit blocking of driveways, atypical manoeuvres and delays (OCC highway officer response, 9th May 2024).
The county, as highway authority, manages on-street parking in Watlington through Temporary Traffic Regulation Orders (TTROs), to suspend parking to prevent congestion during roadworks or temporary events. However, it has refused to use these powers to address regular delays. Permanent parking changes require the highway authority to consult the public through a Permanent Traffic Regulation Order. Despite receiving £4,000 from developers in 2021 specifically for this purpose, the authority has not carried out the necessary consultation. If approved, the parking changes themselves would be implemented by developers at no cost to taxpayers.
On-street parking narrows the carriageway to single lanes on Brook Street, Couching Street and Shirburn Street. This creates the conditions for the worst driver behaviour for emissions, according to the government’s Air Quality Expert Group. Source apportionment by air quality consultants to the County Council, Atkins, shows the largest contribution is from diesel cars (48%), followed by diesel vans (29%), HGVs (13%), petrol cars (6%), and buses (4%).
Some temporary parking removal at school and peak hours would significantly reduce emissions, exit blocking that negatively affects use of property driveways on and off the public highway and delays, even when taking into account all the planned growth in the district’s housing plan. Making better use of the existing highway also addresses that traffic will still be in Watlington.
HGVs
Effective ANPR enforcement is already used by contractors during road works to stop HGVs using unclassified roads signed as “unsuitable for HGVs.” National Highways, which manages the nearby M40 motorway, signposts Watlington at Junction 6 as NOT for HGVs — access only. The county council has included funding in its 2026/27 budget for HGV enforcement measures and has said that from autumn this year it will use ANPR enforcement for Watlington’s weight limit. Without rigorous enforcement, the 7.5-tonne access-only weight limit continues to be flouted all too often.
The proposed Watlington Relief Road would make the route off Junction 6 easier and quicker at Watlington for all traffic, particularly HGVs, with roundabouts for turning. Yet the council has no amelioration plan for what happens to communities around Watlington such as Shirburn, Cuxham or Britwell Salome.
Its own study of road freight logistics highlights that HGVs wanting to access the M40 would be drawn by extra road capacity at Watlington to use B roads south of Watlington. Increased use of the county’s rural B roads to access the M40 would harm the Chilterns National Landscape and increase road maintenance, climate and road safety costs.
Making better use of the existing network
Developers have agreed to implement, at their cost, new bus stops and off-site highway improvements to allow traffic in place of some on-street parking at school hour and peak time. Better enforcement of the 7.5 area weight limit is now planned, and funded, and would immediately reduce large vehicles to only those that need to be there. ORAA supports these evidence based alternative measures are implemented before deciding if the council builds a new road, more than doubling capacity for motor traffic. Oxfordshire County Council’s Local Transport and Connectivity Plan Policy 36a says it will: “Only consider road capacity schemes after all other options have been explored.”