Oxfordshire County Council has started a public consultation on its plan to deliver a zero carbon transport network by 2040.

Oxfordshire County Council’s Cabinet approved the draft Local Transport and Connectivity Plan (LTCP) last October, which – among its many ambitions – aims to cut car journeys by a quarter by 2030 and reduce them by a third by 2040. It also plans to increase the number of cycling trips from 600,000 to one million by 2031.

Now residents can have their say on the plan until 16 March, with final adoption of the plan is currently scheduled for summer 2022.

Councillor Duncan Enright, Oxfordshire County Council’s Cabinet Member for Travel and Development Strategy, said: “We want to know what it would take for people to make fewer journeys by car. We want to hear from them about the financial implications and what they need in terms of alternative transport arrangements.

“The estimated average cost of owning a car is nearly £500 per month if you are paying for it on credit, or nearly £300 if you only take into account fuel, insurance, tax, maintenance and so on. How much would you spend on alternative ways to get around by bus, train, bike, taxi or on foot? What else would you need to cut the number of cars in your house and cut your monthly bills?

“We know we face considerable challenges as we seek to deliver our aspirations. There will be tough decisions around how we use existing road space, but now is the time for an ambitious and comprehensive plan which the LTCP provides. We believe it will help create a thriving county, tackle inequality, protect our environment and improve the health and wellbeing of residents.

“We are really keen for the people of Oxfordshire to engage with us in this process, not just now but throughout the years as it evolves. We know it will take a long time to get to where we want to be, but we have a clear vision of shifting the balance away from single occupancy cars in favour of something more sustainable.”

The LTCP is a wide-ranging document with more than 90 policies, which aim to provide the backbone for the council’s commitment to invest in an inclusive, integrated and sustainable transport network for the county. It looks at ways of reducing the need to travel and discouraging unnecessary individual private vehicle use through making walking, cycling, public and shared transport the natural first choice. Key policy areas include:

• walking and cycling
• road safety
• digital connectivity
• public transport
• environment, carbon and air quality
• network, parking and congestion management
• freight and logistics.