Regulating Cars and Buses in Cities: The Case of Pedestrianisation in Oxford

Debates about whether traffic regulations that limit car use will enhance or hinder a particular urban economy are complex and often emotive. The present article considers evidence from the implementation of a radical traffic restraint and pedestrianisation scheme in Oxford in 1999. The most important achievement was a 17% reduction in car trips to the centre, which did not affect overall visitor numbers. The local economy did though experience a period of difficult trading around the time of implementation.