Oxford Congestion Charge - the TSU Annual Lecture

There's a lot more history to Oxford's congestion charge than it might appear – even if the congestion charge itself has appeared rather suddenly. Oxfordshire County Councillor Andrew Gant, former cabinet member for Highways and Transport Management, described this history to an appreciative audience at the TSU's third annual lecture on 26 May 2026. He spoke of the medieval, radial street pattern, the aborted inner ring road, and the impact of 1998 changes, including a bus gate that he described as still doing its job almost 30 years later. He explained that the bus gate’s example and longevity is why traffic filters were proposed, rather than a congestion charge whose benefit reduces over time. The traffic filters, not the congestion charge, were approved after extensive engagement and consultation processes in 2022. The congestion charge is a temporary replacement because of the multi-year Network Rail closure of Botley Road, the main difference being that motorists can choose to pay to travel through the filter locations. This temporary solution was considered necessary in order to deliver sooner on the Council’s commitment or undertaking to Oxford’s bus companies to improve ‘bus productivity’ and reduce congestion in return for the investment they’d already made in 172 electric buses. Overall, Cllr Gant’s message was that the congestion charge and the traffic filters that will soon replace them, were only one of many puzzle pieces that aim to make Oxford and its public road space work better for people rather than traffic.

Dr Nihan Akyelken then responded, linking the situation in Oxford to wider questions of car-centric urban development and inequities. She also noted the local extremity of housing unaffordability in Oxford that pushed people out of the city, while also making them more car dependent. Although she raised many questions, she particularly asked Councillor Gant to elaborate on the consultation and engagement process, and consider whether there were any unintended consequences. Cllr Gant responded that the temporary nature of the congestion charge meant that there hadn’t been consultation on it, but that its installation mirrors the traffic filters, which included extensive consultation and a citizens’ assembly among other engagement. He said that the monitoring suggests it is performing as expected or even better and directed the audience to the website for more information. He also noted that although the congestion charge was bringing in more money than originally expected, this is legally required to be spent on transport improvements, and has been particularly focused on bus services, offering free park and ride services, with the result of increasing bus ridership. Some in the audience challenged Cllr Gant on whether the Council’s objectives were shared by private bus companies, in response to which Cllr Gant was positive about their relationship. He was also further pressed on displacement of traffic and air pollution to the ring road and the more limited permit numbers available or benefits more generally for non-city residents who are economically dependent on the city to which he argued that non-city residents had more choice of routes, including ones where they would not be charged, and specifically benefited from the free park and ride services and other transport investment.  

There was some wider discussion of communication, misinformation and how to successfully make policy and hear legitimate concerns through the noise, which Cllr Gant did not deny was challenging, adding that although he felt he had dealt with those challenges fairly successfully, their demands was also a key reason for his decision to step down from his cabinet role. Overall, Professor Tim Schwanen highlighted that the implementation of the congestion charge was an achievement which few cities globally have managed, and brings home the wider debates on restrictions and regulations aimed at making places less for cars and more for people.