Letter: There Is a Solution for the Onslow Park & Ride

Published on: 26 Aug, 2024
Updated on: 26 Aug, 2024

From David Ogilvie

In response to: A Chapter of Errors Doomed the Onslow Park & Ride

I refer to Julian Lyons’ letter to The Dragon of August 10 regarding the closure of the Onslow Park & Ride.

Park & Ride is a very viable solution to town centre traffic congestion provided it is properly designed and the cost of use is sensibly set.

Where they have been well designed and located around Guildford they work well.

The location of a Park & Ride to catch traffic on the A3 from the south is very desirable but as Julian has pointed out the current access to the Onslow Park and Ride is very poor, and impinges on the very busy access to the Royal Surrey County Hospital, the Science Park, Tesco’s, the University of Surrey facilities and the nearby hotel.

I attach a sketch of a solution that I gave to GBC planners in 2012. It illustrates a solution that would intercept traffic on the A3 from the south and allow it to return to the south before it gets to the very busy roundabouts accessing the hospital and so on.

Click on image to enlarge

The A3 is on an embankment at this point making a tunnel for return traffic easier to build.

This solution also illustrates how Beechcroft Road could be accessed safely and the dangerous access directly to the A3 could be closed.

It would also provide an alternative access to the very large housing development on green belt at Manor Farm proposed by the university.

I hope that the planners at SCC and GBC would give this proposal some serious thought.

Responses to Letter: There Is a Solution for the Onslow Park & Ride

Bibhas Neogi Reply

August 28, 2024 at 10:58 am

The Park and Ride is now located south of the hotel and not where David Ogilvie had proposed back in 2012. This area now has sports ground of Surrey University.

I had shown a similar idea of access to the car park off the A3 southbound but as part of my document in keepandshare website on the A3 widening sequence. It should be possible to create this alternative layout of the routes in and out of the car park independent of the A3 widening but of course with the co-operation of National Highways for the changes that are necessary on the A3.
David Ogilvie Reply

August 30, 2024 at 2:36 pm

Bibhas Neogi is correct, part of the cost would be to swap part of the sports ground with the current Park and Ride location. I should have pointed this out at the time.