Oxfordshire Quiet Lanes Policy

Oxfordshire County Council (OCC) has adopted a new Quiet Lanes Policy.

The Quiet Lanes Policy is aimed at:

‘reducing traffic dominance, speeds and through traffic on minor roads.

Quiet Lanes create conditions where non-motorised users can share road space more safely and comfortably, helping address longstanding safety and severance issues in rural areas’.

Sign-Only Quiet Lanes Have Failed

The OCC report says that sign-only Quiet Lanes have failed.

‘The term ‘Quiet Lane’ is generally used across England to refer to a road that has been signed to indicate it is suitable for active travel, where motor traffic volumes and vehicle speeds are low enough to provide a safe environment for active users.

However, evidence from schemes implemented in other authorities suggests that mixing motor traffic with active modes (walking, wheeling, cycling and equestrian use) through sign only Quiet Lanes has not had the desired impact’.

It references a Transport Research Laboratory Review which concludes that:

‘the best-documented UK pilots show little to no systematic reduction in speeds or motor traffic volumes from signs alone; user awareness may improve, but the lanes remain open to general traffic without enforceable restrictions’.

It also points to a DfT evaluation which indicates:

‘that signage-only approaches generally have little to no influence on reducing traffic volumes or speeds’.

This is also my own experience. For example, I experienced a lot of close passes on Woldgate, near Bridlington, on Stage 3 of the Way of the Roses.

It is signed as a cycle- and horse rider-friendly route with a speed limit of 40mph, but it’s hostile to cycling.

Modal Filters

Oxfordshire’s Quiet Lanes will therefore have modal filters to cut out through traffic.

The report says:

‘If the objective is genuinely safer, lower-trafficked minor roads, physical closures or restrictions are the only reliably effective intervention.

Therefore in this policy…it is recommended that the term ‘Quiet Lanes’ is used to refer to traffic management schemes using physical measures to restrict motor vehicle traffic on minor roads’.

Parish Council Support

The report says that Quiet Lanes proposals should be put forward by or supported by the Parish Council, Town Council or County Councillors.

The County Council can put forward schemes itself where they are part of the Strategic Active Travel Network or a local LCWIP.

Next Steps

There is to be a programme of ten pilots in 2026/27, then wider rollout from late 2027.