Comment

Your paper wants to see all Oxford park-and-rides run on the same system (Oxford Mail, April 22). So do we.

We also want to make sure that we get the best deal for Oxford in the process.

And we want the influence of the city to be extended not just to park-and-ride, but to the big issues of traffic management more generally within the city.

We are looking for a deal that is not just about cash, but also about meeting the real transport needs of the people in the city.

Let's face it - the Conservatives at County Hall have not earned a great reputation for sticking up for residents of Oxford.

Just remember the introduction of residents' parking charges, despite overwhelming opposition from the city council and our residents expressed in the county council's own consultation.

So, we should be letting down the people of Oxford if we didn't study both the small print of the deal and look at the bigger picture before signing on the dotted line.

That's what we've been doing, and working for a better deal for Oxford as a result.

We need to be sure that, in future, decisions about traffic management, parking and charges, and access to Oxford by train, bus and private vehicles fully take into account the needs of our residents and all those who work in or visit the city.

This is why we have argued strongly for the city having real involvement in the big decisions on transport in our city.

We who live in Oxford need a park-and-ride system which is not just unified but which is improved and expanded.

We will be at the table pressing the county to do just that.

We are looking for a new style of working between the two councils - more consensual and cooperative, where each council recognises the responsibilities of the other, listens to the other and, above all, to the views of the people most directly affected.

The deal we have now done with the county sets the scene for this.

JOHN GODDARD

Lib Dem Councillor and former Oxford City Council leader

6:33pm Monday 5th May 2008

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