Transport bosses have unveiled new plans to transform travel along Oxford Road, with a major bus priority corridor featuring Greater Manchester’s first ever Dutch-style cycle lanes.
Key changes will include opening up Oxford Road to general traffic overnight from 9pm until 6am, seven days a week and extensions to the ‘Dutch-style’ cycle lanes at two key locations along Oxford Road, alongside Whitworth Park and at the University Precinct opposite the Kilburn building.
Transport for Greater Manchester (TfGM) and Manchester City Council have developed the plans for Oxford Road, which go hand-in-hand with the recently advertised bus priority changes for the city centre.
The scheme, which will limit general traffic along sections of Oxford Road and include over 4km of segregated bus lanes, is part of a wider bus priority package that will significantly improve the quality, punctuality and reliability of bus services on 25 miles of key routes in Greater Manchester.
The updated plans for Oxford Road have been announced as road-widening, resurfacing and junction improvement work comes to an end this week on parallel Upper Brook Street.
The extra road space, and additional parking and loading restrictions, will keep traffic flowing along the route into and out of Manchester city centre.
New toucan crossings on Upper Brook Street are also benefiting pedestrians and cyclists while making Oxford Road easier to reach by people living in Ardwick.
Councillor Andrew Fender, Chair of the Transport for Greater Manchester Committee, said: “This is an exciting scheme that will revolutionise sustainable travel along one of the busiest routes into Manchester city centre, with better access to the universities, healthcare and businesses along the route.
“As well as speeding up bus journey times and improving cycling, pedestrians using Oxford Road will benefit from wider footpaths and safer crossing points along the route.
