Latest news with #trafficreduction
Bloomberg
4 days ago
- Business
- Bloomberg
NYC's Congestion Toll Slashes Traffic Jams in Manhattan by 25%
New York City's congestion pricing toll has cut Manhattan traffic delays by 25% and reduced gridlock in nearby New Jersey counties by as much as 14%, undercutting fears the policy would worsen traffic outside the city, a new report from the Regional Plan Association shows. Time lost due to traffic in Manhattan fell 28% from Jan. 5, when the toll launched, through April 26, with congestion pricing accounting for a quarter of that drop, according to the report, which was released Wednesday.
BBC News
5 days ago
- Automotive
- BBC News
Oxford congestion charge proposals to go to public consultation
Plans for a temporary £5 congestion charge for car drivers in Oxford will be the subject of a public consultation from the start of next County Council's cabinet has agreed to take the proposals forward to the next official stage and will launch a survey for the public to offer meeting was attended by local business representatives, bus companies and cycling organisations, as well as councillors, speaking both in favour and against the adopted, the scheme is due to launch in the autumn and would last no longer than two years. The temporary congestion charge plans are designed to reduce traffic on some of the busiest roads in Oxford, making bus journeys faster and improving safety for cyclists and walkers. They use large parts of the council's delayed traffic filter programme, including the automatic number plate recognition technology and exact locations where the filter plans were to be of fining vehicles for passing through the area, as would be the case with the traffic filters, car drivers would instead need to pay a £5 congestion charge, irrespective of the direction they are travelling makes it different to other congestion charge areas, where an entire zone is inaccessible without paying the Oxford, car drivers would be able to avoid the cameras by using different routes, with the exception of the very centre of Oxford - including the car parks at Westgate, Oxpens, Worcester Street and the station's long and short stay car public consultation will be hosted on the county council's Let's Talk Oxfordshire engagement platform and will run for six weeks. A series of online information sessions are also planned by the council. You can follow BBC Oxfordshire on Facebook, X (Twitter), or Instagram.
Yahoo
6 days ago
- Automotive
- Yahoo
'Our city wants to charge us £5 to drive to the centre'
The introduction of the controversial Oxford congestion charge is to be debated by councillors this week. On June 17, Oxfordshire County Council officials will discuss the plan for a £5 charge for drivers to access the city centre along six routes. If councillors back the plan, a public consultation would begin on 23 June and the congestion charge could be introduced this autumn. If approved, the temporary congestion charge would be the first to launch in the UK for 20 years, following similar schemes in London and Durham. When we visited the city this week, Oxford residents told Yahoo News they had mixed feelings about the scheme. While bus companies in Oxford have welcomed the plan, businesses leaders and members of the public have all raised their opposition, with an online petition opposing the charge approaching 10,000 signatures. Yahoo News UK asked people in Oxford what they think of the congestion charge proposal: Conor Phelan, 27, a postdoctoral researcher at Oxford University and a cyclist, said: 'Overall, reducing the volume of traffic in Oxford is good. It will make the city safer, especially with the problem of cars in standstill traffic. 'One time I was on my bike cycling through standstill traffic and nearly got hit by a car door. 'I drive as well so I can understand the pain but ultimately, I back it because of what it will do in terms of disincentivising traffic and encouraging cycling." Angie Ingenfeld, 69, a tourist visiting Oxford from Bonn in Germany, said: 'I think it is very loud at the moment, with so much traffic in the city. We have to watch for the cars and we cannot enjoy the sightseeing so much." Her husband, Steve, 60, said: 'We parked at the Oxford park and ride because it was easy and cheap. If people want to go to the city to do their shopping, they could take that." Dan Roiser, 41, owner of the Peloton Espresso cafe, said: 'I think people who are against it often don't live in the city. I cycle to work. I don't like a city full of cars. But they should have invested more in public transport before bringing it in.' Ibrahim Ahmed, 27, co-director of Oxford computer service store GigaFix, said: 'From a business perspective, we are getting shafted from all angles. 'In a business like this, there's a lot of dropping boxes off. So for us it will make that more expensive.' 'I know a lot of other businesses who are struggling a lot and it breaks my heart really because it is their only source of income. People have been suffering and this might force them to close." But Joe Smith, 21, an Oxford Brookes University student working at Peloton Espresso, who backs the plan, said: 'A lot of business owners don't realise that where these types of pedestrianisation measures have happened, foot traffic has tended to improve." He added: 'Some of the difficulty in Oxford has come from the fact that the council has put the cart before the horse and hasn't yet invested in the infrastructure enough." Cab driver Abdul Wahid, 57, who has signed a petition against the scheme, said: 'I've signed it because it's going to affect the city. 'They think it will reduce traffic, but this is not London. It is local people living here, and they will just pay the fine. People have to take kids to school. They have to go to the hospital. 'My mother is disabled and I have to take her for appointments. With the congestion charge, I won't be able to afford to pay £5 every time we go. The cost of living is already very high. 'The council should make people's lives easier, not harder.' Ansar Hussain, 52, a cab driver, said: 'It is a bad idea. They say it is an environmental measure, but eventually all vehicles will be hybrid anyway so I think they are just trying to cash in." The proposals would see drivers pay a £5 congestion charge to go into Oxford city centre. Not every motorist would be affected - drivers such as carers, traders and disabled blue badge holders would be allowed to apply for a permit that would allow them to travel by car in the city. Permits would also be given to people with cars who live within the congestion charge area. The plan would be enforced by number plate recognition cameras and would apply along six roads. Hythe Bridge Street, St Cross Road, Thames Street and St Clement's Street would be part of the congestion charge from 7am to 7pm seven days a week, while Marston Ferry Road and Hollow Way would be affected between 7am and 9am and 3pm and 6pm on Monday to Saturday. The £5 charge would be payable online or by phone up until midnight on the day after a motorists goes through one of the six routes. The congestion charge is designed to be a temporary measure, to plug the gap until a different traffic calming scheme is ready. Oxfordshire County Council said the congestion charge would last a maximum of two years and is required because of delays to a trial of traffic filters, which cannot be introduced until after Botley Road in the city is reopened, expected sometime in summer 2026. The traffic filters scheme would again use number plate recognition cameras, but motorists without a valid permit could face fines of £70 (reduced to £35 if paid within 21 days) for driving down certain roads. "There's too much traffic in Oxford," said Oxfordshire County Council. "We want to create an attractive, thriving city with better buses, safer cycling, less congestion and cleaner air." An online petition, started by councillor Saj Malik, calling for the congestion charge to be stopped, has reached more than 9,000 signatures. He said is it "essentially another tax that will hit residents, workers and businesses hard, especially those who can least afford it". Read more: Oxford anti-congestion charge petition gets 6,500 signatures in three days (Oxford Mail) The Oxford Business Access Group is also against the congestion charge, accusing the council of deciding to "make it harder for customers to reach our valuable shops and small businesses". However, transport companies Stagecoach West and Oxford Bus have both welcomed the plans, saying they will make buses a more attractive alternative to cars. The plans have also led to a row between Oxfordshire County Council and Oxford City Council, who say they've not been properly included in the proposals.
BBC News
02-06-2025
- General
- BBC News
Mill Road bus gate: More than 4,600 fines issued to drivers
A council has been issuing around 100 fines a day on average to drivers for illegally using a bus Mill Road bridge bus gate in Cambridge was introduced on 11 March, banning vehicles except for buses, emergency services, taxis and blue badge holders' registered vehicles.A Freedom of Information request submitted by the Local Democracy Reporting Service shows more than 4,600 fines were issued in its first seven Alex Beckett, chair of Cambridgeshire County Council's highways and transport committee, said "nobody wants to fine people" but that the restrictions made Mill Road a "more enjoyable, safer place to visit". He said: "Mill Road is the centre of a community. We want it to be a more enjoyable, safer place to visit and to encourage more people to come into the area."Reducing motorised through traffic and installing the bus gate will help achieve this."Anyone driving illegally through the bus gate can be issued with a Penalty Charge Notice of £70, discounted to £35 if paid within 21 fines were due to begin on March 11, enforcement was suspended for two days due to emergency work to fix a burst water main in the area, with fines starting on March the first seven weeks of the bus gate being fully operational, 4,677 fines were issued to drivers who breached the restrictions. In the first full week of its operation, commencing March 16, there were 857 fines highest number of fines issued in one week was in the week commencing March 30, when 887 fines were issued to drivers. Cambridgeshire County Council agreed last year to issue a Traffic Regulation Order (TRO) to install a bus gate on the was the second time the authority agreed to issue a TRO after the first was quashed following a legal restrictions created under the TRO closed the bridge to all motor vehicles. There were exemptions for local buses, taxis, emergency services, blue badge holders registered vehicles, vehicles in a disabled tax class, and vehicles on the council's permitted vehicles who fit into one of the categories still have to apply to the county council for a bus gate and cyclists were also still allowed to continue to cross the county council put in place a formal warning period at the start of the year, issuing warning PCNs to drivers who breached the bus gate restrictions, but not actual were also put up at the bridge to warn drivers about the new restrictions. Follow Cambridgeshire news on BBC Sounds, Facebook, Instagram and X.
CTV News
29-05-2025
- General
- CTV News
Photo radar cameras in Barrie cut speeds, net $1.2M - and they're here to stay
The City of Barrie aims to make its speed camera program permanent with additional cameras. The City of Barrie aims to make its speed camera program permanent with additional cameras. City plans for more speed cameras after program brings in millions Nobody likes to find a ticket in the mail, but in Barrie it's been a game-changer. A staff report presented to council this week revealed the City's two-year automated speed enforcement (ASE) pilot project has made a measurable impact on how fast people drive, and has brought in over $1.2 million in revenue. As a result, city council voted Wednesday in favour of making the program permanent and expanding it. The report showed average speeds dropped at all 12 locations where speed cameras were studied. 'Not only does it bring down the speeds in the areas during the time that the cameras are active, but also to a high percentage of the time, the speeds actually continue to be reduced even after the cameras are gone,' said Ward 7 Councillor Gary Harvey. The program started with two cameras and the city intends to add two more as permanent fixtures in school and community safety zones with high pedestrian activity, specifically involving children. 'We're putting them in school and safety zones where our children are playing,' said Mayor Alex Nuttall. 'We should have these types of devices to ensure that if the habit of the public is to speed in school zones, we need to find a way to slow that down.' Of the revenue generated by the program, more than half-a-million will be allocated toward community safety initiatives. Council is also considering introducing red light cameras, a measure that's currently under review by staff. A final report is expected in the coming months for council's consideration.
