• Wed. Nov 13th, 2024

Remember when the paving cracked in Frideswide Square?

Byoxfordnewspaper

Aug 9, 2022

An ambitious redesign of Frideswide Square was completed by Oxfordshire County Council in 2015, but it did not go smoothly and more work was required in 2016, which disappointed local traders.

Businesses in the square next to Oxford rail station were infuriated after work to create a clean, modern, pedestrianised piazza turned into into an unsightly mess.

Following the £6.7m renovation in 2015, construction workers needed to return the following year to dig up new paving stones that had started to crack.

Read again: Two more LTN bollards vandalised in east Oxford

Oxfordshire County Council, which paid for the revamp, was unable to offer any official explanation for why the cracks had appeared, although leader Ian Hudspeth said he guessed heavy vehicles must have been driving over the York stones.

Oxford Mail:

Despite the works starting, the council did not initially make contact with the businesses on the square's south side to tell them what was going on.

Musa Yasin, manager of the Mini Station shop, said at the time: "Of course it affects business. People are now not coming in – they walk to the other side of the square.

Read again: Our favourite independent bookshops

Oxford Mail:

Engineers also needed to rebuild pavements around the eastern roundabout that were destroyed by coaches and lorries driving across them – a project which was estimated to cost about £30,000.

The £6.7m revamp was not finished when the new bus stops were found to be too short and needed tarmac added at the ends to allow vehicles to enter and exit without driving over kerbs.

Read more: Why Oxford station is set to close

The county council leader at the time, Ian Hudspeth, said he was still happy with the results of the revamp and insisted the council did not "skimp" on the cost.

Oxford Mail:

Following the initial difficulties the square has remained reasonably trouble-free and has benefited from new businesses including Sainsbury's in 2019 and Lula's Ethiopian cafe at The Community Works in 2021.