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We delivered this award winning major city gateway project on behalf of the client, Oxfordshire County Council. The project involved the transformation of the major city gateway that was dominated by standing traffic into to a pleasant, open space with a free-flowing lane for traffic.
The team worked nearly 45,000 working hours, used over 400 tonnes of granite and 3,735 square metres of York stone to complete the construction of the new junction, with shared space facilities for pedestrians, cyclists and public transport.
A key feature of the innovative design has been the removal of all traffic signals and the introduction of two roundabouts at either end of the square, in order to keep the traffic moving.
County Councillor David Nimmo Smith, cabinet member for environment and economy, said: “The new road layout creates a welcoming gateway into the city with only two traffic lanes, instead of the six we had before the work started, and has massively enhanced public space.
“The old system with the traffic lights led to a start-stop situation which wasn’t good for traffic flow and the general look of the area."
The team’s hard work has delivered a high quality public realm scheme and significantly improved the flow of traffic, which allows more than 42,000 vehicles to pass through it each day.
Pedestrians now have large areas of space and can walk safely across the square at a number of crossing points, while cyclists can choose to use on or off-road routes.
The design of the square, named after St Frideswide, the patron saint of Oxford, is based on shared space, which removes the segregation of pedestrians and vehicles.
This was achieved by removing features such as multiple lanes of traffic, traffic lights, and introducing low kerbs and courtesy crossing points.
Frideswide Square took the top prize at the Oxford Preservation Trust annual awards in the Environment and Landscape category, recognising the transformation of the major gateway into a pleasant, open space with a free-flowing lane for traffic.
