ON THE ROAD!
Recently, four Rose Hill residents joined a free eight-week film-making course at Rose Hill Community centre exploring community transport and mobility around their City.
The project was created by Oxford Brookes as part of the Healthy Urban Mobility project. The HUM project aims to understand the impact of everyday (im)mobility on health and well being within different communities both in the UK and Brazil. Another important part of the project is to identify any potential solutions to problems that restrict mobility.
The residents made two films during the course. The first about their local bus service and the second about cycling in Oxford. Film Oxford ran the sessions and supported the filming and editing.
Margaret Roper, a Rose Hill resident and workshop attendee said: “We met some fab people including our great teacher, Miguel. We all brought different skills to the project. I brought my knowledge of Rose Hill and understanding of local concerns. Lina and Joe were extremely good in their knowledge of using the equipment. And Eleanor was good at interviewing.”
The first film made was about cycling in Oxford and the potential benefits and risks that cyclists faced. Eleanor Watts, a resident and member of the Rose Hill & Iffley Low Carbon group also attended the workshop and said:
“Three of our interviewees pointed out that cycling is quick, clean, cheap, healthy and enjoyable. It also relieves congestion and pollution. However, two interviewees were too scared to cycle. The cycle lanes are faded and often disappear. Cars can park behind or over cycle lanes. Roundabouts and junctions are especially dangerous. We ultimately would like separate and continuous cycle tracks throughout Oxford.”
The residents also filmed a video about their number 20 bus service that now only runs between 10am-1:30pm. Margaret discussed the lack of service in Rose Hill and the difficulties residents can face: “People cannot use the bus to get to work, the bank, the post office or the connecting service to the JR Hospital during these times. Also, it does not go to the lower parts of Rose Hill estate. This means that older and disabled residents have a difficult climb up the hill to The Oval. We would like a full No 20 bus service.”
The films premiered at the November Rose Hill Tenants & Residents meeting and was well received. Congratulations to Eleanor Watts, Margaret Roper, Lina and Joe Vosa. They would also like to thank the following people: Miguel, Barbara, Tara, Adrian, Marc and Terry and Ben Spencer at Oxford Brookes.
Following on from the cycling film, a petition has been launched to call for separate and continuous cycle tracks in Oxford. To see the petition visit: View petition
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