The experience of Quiet Lanes in Oxfordshire has been less than successful. However, the Department for Transport issued new guidelines in August 2006 that address many of our concerns.

Quiet Lanes in Oxfordshire

The CountryWays scheme was designed in 2001 by Oxfordshire County Council, Chilterns Conservation Board and South Oxfordshire District Council. At the core of the plan was “a network of lanes which will have low speeds and numbers of vehicles which will be attractive to walkers, cyclists and horse riders, but still providing access for vehicles.” The plans also included traffic calming chicanes in and around Checkendon village but these removed after installation following concerns about safety.

The implementation of the scheme has not met its original promise. While the scheme was originally welcomed locally, there is now evidence of local opposition and the signage has recently been subject to extensive vandalism by protesters. Oxfordshire County Council consider that the high initial support may have been more in recognition of the problem that approval of the solutions.

We continue to support the principle of shared use of tranquil lanes. But our view is that implementation of the Quiet Lanes scheme in the Checkendon and Stoke Row area of the Chilterns AONB has been insensitive to the landscape, with excessive and oversized signage. The initial consultation on the plans suggested a more modest use of signs in accordance with the “Environmental Guidance for the Management of Roads in the Chilterns.” But the scheme was implemented using Department of Transport guidance. Our view is that the signs installed are excessive in size; that too many were used in the CountryWays pilot; and that they are inappropriate to quiet rural settings. We do, however, support the use of fingerposts to identify quiet lanes and limited smaller signage.

• CPRE national press release on Quiet Lanes (January 2005)
• CPRE Guide to Quiet Lanes
• Department for Transport Quiet Lanes Regulations (2006)