A bollard has been sawn off overnight by vigilantes after wooden designs replaced plastic posts which were vandalised more than 20 times in an ongoing row over Low Traffic Neighbourhoods (LTNs).
Oxfordshire County Council spent thousands of pounds replacing the controversial bollards in its LTN scheme after furious residents repeatedly damaged them.
Bollards in the city have been driven over, pulled out of the ground and even set on fire since they were installed in May last year.
The LTNs have divided neighbourhoods, with many drivers furious they can no longer drive down residential roads.
Some residents have praised the scheme for cutting crime and traffic, but others have repeatedly damaged the bollards in protest.
The new ‘anti-vandal’ wooden bollards had only been erected for ten days before one on Clive Road in the city was sawn off, leaving only a stump behind.
A spokesman for the council said: ‘We take the damage to the bollard on Clive Road very seriously.
‘It presents a significant safety risk to road users, pedestrians and cyclists alike, and can impede emergency services access.
‘Our contractors are making it safe as a priority.’
Another bollard in Howard Street was dubbed the most vandalised in the UK after it was repeatedly ripped out of the ground.
Shocking footage shows motorists driving straight over the bollard, and one man setting fire to it at night before running away.
Amir Steve Ali, a campaigner in Oxford who previously stood as an independent council candidate, said last week: ‘The new bollard means emergency services are wasting valuable time by finding the key and unlocking it.
Read More: Now vigilantes SAW OFF wooden road bollard in Oxford just 10 days after it was installed
