iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

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Jennifer Yee @jenwhy.bsky.social · 19/09/2026

From the Bodleian exhibition on pets, I note that this ancient Egyptian papyrus is a receipt for a congestion charge for a camel. The choice of wording is, I suspect, a very Oxford joke.

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Laura Gordon @lauragordon.bsky.social · 18/09/2026

I am the local LD councillor and I have not supported this campaign. No one asked me to, presumably because they knew what I'd say. This just absolutely, categorically untrue.

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Jonn Elledge @jonnelledge.bsky.social · 16/09/2026

I have to tell you now that no such undertaking has been received - and that consequently, this country is at war with Piddington.

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Badly Parked Oxford @badlyparkedox.bsky.social · 21/08/2026

Marston St stub can be opened for emergency vehicles. This firefighter says they are often blocked by #badlyparkedcars. #dangerousparking

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Stephen Gower @sjgower.eurosky.social · 19/08/2026

I've updated my previous work to make an unofficial map to help explain Oxford's traffic filters, due to start on 28th September. Please share if useful, but not for republication in news media, advertising or political/campaign material without further approval from me.

Unofficial explanatory map of Oxford’s car traffic-filter trial, starting 28 September 2026. Oxford streets are shown four colour-coded areas showing how each can be reached by car from the Ring Road without passing through a traffic filter: blue from the north, brown/orange from the east, turquoise from the south, and purple from the west. Matching coloured arrows show the appropriate Ring Road approaches. Six traffic filters are marked: Hollow Way and Marston Ferry Road operate 7–9am and 3–6pm Monday–Saturday; St Cross Road, Hythe Bridge Street, Thames Street and St Clement’s operate 7am–7pm daily. It is noted that Traffic filter (TF) permits do not apply to other filters such as High Street or those in East Oxford/Cowley. A QR code and text links to full details at https://www.oxfordshire.gov.uk/trafficfilters

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Alex von Tunzelmann @alexvont.bsky.social · 12/08/2026

Stop considering it. Just ban them. Do it now. Disposable barbecues are (a) useless as BBQs, take ages, food often still raw in middle, (b) environmentally horrible, (c) incredibly good at starting massive fires. There is no good argument for them. Bin them off www.theguardian.com/society/2026...

theguardian.com

Burnham to consider ban on disposable barbecues as wildfires rage in UK

PM to look at imposing restriction in public spaces, though campaigners fear it does not go far enough

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Stephen Gower @sjgower.eurosky.social · 12/08/2026

I liked the excuse of taking our colander to the park to meet up with other people who had done the same. A bit like dog walking without needing the dog.

Shadows of three colendars and a steamer basket on a large sheet of paper being held upright in the park. The individual holes of the colendars (and steamer) show the crescent shape of today's partial eclipse.

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Sir Basil @sirbasil.bsky.social · 10/08/2026

I don't think there should be a defibrilator on Snowdon. And that's a hill I'm prepared to die on

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Stephen Gower @sjgower.eurosky.social · 08/08/2026

I know it's not new news that the French are generous with their bollards, but that doesn't stop me taking lots of photos of them.

A line of bollards in Lille separates a carriageway from the wider pedestrianised area. Both sections are laid out in sets/cobbles, but the pattern changes between each.

Bollards separating a carriageway from a fully pedestrianised area.

Plastic bollards narrow the carriageway in a back street in
Lille. The space created is being used for wheelie bin storage.

A row of bollards along the edge of the pavement/sidewalk of a cobbled street in Lille

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Stephen Gower @sjgower.eurosky.social · 06/08/2026

Today I got to be driver on the Lille Metro.

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Stephen Gower @sjgower.eurosky.social · 03/08/2026

Family holiday to Lille. I think @eurostarjustin.bsky.social might be our train manager 🚄🌊

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hannah @hannah.computer · 18/07/2026

there we go

The front page for IKEA EKET S17, showing 17 cube-shaped IKEA EKET shelf units arranged near-optimally.

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Stephen Gower @sjgower.eurosky.social · 17/07/2026

Will Greater Oxford residents be limited to recycling at Redbridge? Lets hope the 3 month closure (originally set for spring 2025, now slipped to 2027) is complete before vesting day!

Map showing the shapes of the three Unitary Authorities that are expected to be made from Oxfordshire and West Berkshire, with the locations of current Household Waste Recycling Centres overlaid.

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Foxfeather Zenkova @foxfeather.bsky.social · 09/06/2026

Confessions from a sandhill crane colt: Ugly mom was doing the best she could with what she had (chopsticks and a sock). #wildliferehab 🪶

A sandhill crane puppet made from a grey sock and pair of black chopsticks

A sandhill crane puppet made from a grey sock and pair of black chopsticks offering a bite of food to an orphaned colt

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Stephen Gower @sjgower.eurosky.social · 06/06/2026

My elderflower cordial is slightly sparkling. Lean in and make wine (I don't really drink any more, so probably not), heat it (80°C ?) and bottle, or use the very limited freezer space we have?

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川上信 (Shin Kawakami)🇯🇵🇨🇳🇺🇸 @nkfinity.bsky.social · 25/05/2026

It reveals at the core of the American psyche they love vertical density and walkable neighborhoods with lots of amenities nearby.

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The War on Cars @thewaroncars.bsky.social · 21/05/2026

"Bikes can replace car trips" ≠ "Everyone MUST replace their car and ride a bike for all trips."

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Stephen Gower @sjgower.eurosky.social · 15/05/2026

I realised today that at some point in the last couple of years I've changed from thinking "that person will retire eventually and then I won't have to deal with them" to "I will retire eventually and then I won't have to deal with that person"

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Jo Kibble (Political Animal) @politicanimal.bsky.social · 29/04/2026

Suet tdns, only £3.25!

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Blair Lorenzo / The Fox and the City @thefoxandthecity.com · 04/04/2026

Undergrad: "We're going to build a subway network!" Grad student: "We can build light rail!" Early career planner: "BRT is a cost saving service as good as rail!" Grizzled planner: "What if we somewhat improved the existing bus service"

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Stephen Gower @sjgower.eurosky.social · 23/03/2026

1 Residents already get 100 day-passes 2 The schemes don't apply to anything other than cars 3 Exemptions for cars-as-goods-vehicle, care work, blue-badge, etc already 4 Journeys over 4 miles quicker by the Ring Road anyway Pledge is for those who want to drive <4 miles, more than 2 days a week.

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Malaclypse the Middle @malaclypse.bsky.social · 15/03/2026

In Neal Stephenson's book Zodiac, the protagonist is a bicyclist who wears all black and no lights on the theory that drivers are homicidal maniacs and if they cannot see him they will not try and kill him, and much as I want, I cannot fault this theory.

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Stephen Gower @sjgower.eurosky.social · 03/03/2026

It feels like so much of what's going on in Oxford seems to come down to bridges, with Botley Road bridge, Donnington Road Bridge, the Ice Rink bridge, Kennington rail bridge and others. Anyway, I've made a whatsapp group for general Oxon bridge chat and fandom. HMU for the link!

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Stephen Gower @sjgower.eurosky.social · 09/02/2026

Scholars may have decided that it's looking backwards over its wings, but have they considered it may instead be the earliest picture of @owlsintowels.org ?

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Ferris Jabr @ferrisjabr.bsky.social · 08/02/2026

The oldest known image of an owl: More than 30,000 years ago, someone skillfully scratched the figure of a long-eared owl (Asio otus) into the soft outer layer of the walls of Chauvet Cave, France. The owl is looking backward over their wings, head turned 180 degrees carnegiemnh.org/ancient-owl-...

Photo of the described owl art. It looks like muddy scratch marks on a mottled brown cave wall. The head is very round with two upright lines for ears and a line in the center for a beak. Numerous parallel lines suggest plumage on the wings.

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Jo Kibble (Political Animal) @politicanimal.bsky.social · 05/02/2026

‘Can cork man stay afloat?’ was right there.

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Stephen Gower @sjgower.eurosky.social · 05/02/2026

What's the nicest model filter in terms of placemaking? I've gone off the planter thing a bit and am beginning to think a row of wooden bollards is as nice as anything, especially in a location that gets a lot of littering.

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Robert Knight @rupertairbear.bsky.social · 02/02/2026

It's all go down at Oxford station. The old bridge decks have been removed, with work now focusing on removing the abutments.

Botley Road, from Frideswide Square. Diggers are removing the old pedestrian walkway of the old bridge.

A closer look at the old Botley Road bridge. The decks have been removed, diggers are removing the abutment.

From Botley side of the Botley Road, the construction site with the railway in the background. The bridge decks have been removed and diggers are removing the abutment.

A large crane lifting a bridge section off the back of a lorry.

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Stephen Gower @sjgower.eurosky.social · 19/01/2026

I just like to say STAIR LTG EMG TEST KEY SW IN MAINS RM RISER

A PIR detector, with a code label on it (DB AL 21/CCT 7L2). Directly above is another label that reads "STAIR LTG EMG TEST KEY SW IN MAINS RM RISER"

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Stephen Gower @sjgower.eurosky.social · 15/01/2026

Sam's tactic was actually good for the team during the game. The shield was there to waste time as people looked for it rather than the answer. He completely nullified that in the first move. #TheTraitors #TheTraitorsUK

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Oxford Clarion @oxfordclarion.bsky.social · 15/01/2026

🚨 BREAKING: A legal bid to halt Oxford’s congestion charge has been turned down. The High Court today refused an application for judicial review by Open Roads For Oxford Ltd, which had raised £60,000 “from private donations, transfers from aligned funds, and our GoFundMe campaign” to bring the case.

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Stephen Gower @sjgower.eurosky.social · 13/01/2026

The number of private hire vehicle (PHV) taxis in Oxford has risen by 60% since July 2023. (Source: www.whatdotheyknow.com/request/numb...).

A line chart titled "Licenced Taxi Vehicles in Oxford". X-axis shows dates from 08/07/023 to 20/12/2025. A purple line shows the number of Hackney Carriage Vehicles staying steady at around 110. A green line shows the number of Private Hire Vehicles starting at 637 with a steady increase until June 2024 when it plateaus (and even falling slightly) until May 2025 from where there is a much faster increase to reach 1020 by the end of the graph. A vertical blue line labelled "Uber Licenced as operator" intersects the graph in late February 2025.

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glenysmw @glenysmw.bsky.social · 13/01/2026

And the consequence to this is of course that those parking in the public domain without paying rent are in fact stealing land from the public and the public have every right to want their land back

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Jim Waterson @jim.londoncentric.media · 08/01/2026

Parking on the pavement in London has been illegal for 52 years and in the rest of the UK it's just a fact of life. Central government just opted against a blanket national ban. Anyway here's an excellent advert from when it was banned in London: www.youtube.com/watch?v=a8Yg...

youtube.com

An advert from the 1970s encouraging people not to park on pavements

YouTube video by Bet Kas

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Stephen Gower @sjgower.eurosky.social · 05/01/2026

Grit Bins in Oxford (data from Feb 2024 www.whatdotheyknow.com/request/grit... )

A map of Oxford, with callouts from every grit bin giving a description of the location.

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The Ranty Highwayman @rantyhighwayman.bsky.social · 29/12/2025

The strategic road network is managed by a charity and relies on the goodwill of land owners for access. Some motorways will be muddy and flooded each winter. Also The strategic road network stops randomly at council boundaries and investment is where councils are willing. (UK edition).

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Laura Gordon @lauragordon.bsky.social · 06/12/2025

The government can't clean up the illegal landfill because it's too expensive to pay money to a different bit of the government. This is absurd. Get in a room and sort it out.

theguardian.com

Environment Agency faces landfill tax bill worth millions to clear illegal waste

Exclusive: ‘extremely unhelpful’ policy seen as deterrent to clearing thousands of dump sites across England

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Jo Kibble (Political Animal) @politicanimal.bsky.social · 26/11/2025

Stick it in the Louvre.

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Sian Berry MP @sianberry.bsky.social · 25/11/2025

Since 2011 the fuel duty freeze has cost the Treasury £133 billion. This huge amount could have paid for lower train and bus fares, better stations, safer walking, wheeling and cycling and much more! www.thetimes.com/uk/politics/...

thetimes.com

Rachel Reeves will freeze fuel duty to dodge ‘political suicide’

The chancellor will also highlight a rise in the minimum wage and plans to cut energy bills as she tries to win over voters by focusing on cost of living

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Danny Yee @dannyyee.bsky.social · 20/11/2025

London's most dangerous junction for cycling has had thirty injuries in the last five years. Oxford's Plain roundabout has had forty injuries in that time.

Map showing the location of injuries 2020-2024 at Oxford's Plain roundabout. The largest cluster by far is at the Iffley exit / Cowley entry, with smaller clusters at Cowley Place and St Clements entries.

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Dave Andress @davidandress.bsky.social · 14/11/2025

If you want to see a government ACTUALLY “losing control” of something, helpless in the face of organised crime, look at this: www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

bbc.co.uk

Kidlington fly-tipping: Criminals dump mountain of waste in field

The enormous pile of rubbish is called an

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Cowleyforniadreaming @holybollards.bsky.social · 05/11/2025

The first tenant has been announced at Oxford North.

Snoopy lying on the red Oxford North building

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James O'Malley @jamesomalley.co.uk · 23/10/2025

This new database will fix almost everything annoying about driving (FREE TO READ!) takes.jamesomalley.co.uk/p/fix-annoyi...

takes.jamesomalley.co.uk

This new database will fix almost everything annoying about driving

The government is quietly building something excellent

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Oxford Clarion @oxfordclarion.bsky.social · 21/10/2025

Chiltern Railways has conceded that East West Rail services from Oxford to Milton Keynes are unlikely to start this year, after troubles were first reported by the Clarion. A statement that “we are confident that trains will be running this year” has been quietly removed from their website.

East West Rail train on a test run at Oxford station

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Will Norman @willnorman.co.uk · 15/10/2025

London is proud to host Japan's Grand Sumo Tournament this week - it's fantastic to see the the teams using our cycling infrastructure to get around.

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Stephen Gower @sjgower.eurosky.social · 12/10/2025

I made an infographic map. Oxford's Congestion Charge scheme (from 29th Oct) is not like most congestion charge schemes, because you can get to most streets in the city without being charged. My impression is a lot of people haven't realised this.

A street map of Oxford.

Woodstock Road, Banbury Road and the streets in their immediate vicinity are coloured pink. Botley Road and streets off it are coloured green. Cowley Road, Iffley Road and Abingdon Road and streets off them are coloured blue. Streets in Marston and Headington are coloured orange. The ring road matches the colours at each junction and fades between colours as it goes around. A small area in the middle is coloured yellow, and labelled "Central Permit Area". THe Congestion Charge traffic filters are indicated by black circles circles with white segments, those white segments correspond on a 24 hour clock face with when the filter isn't operational (and the remaining black, when the filters are operational). Crosses mark other filters in the city that are enforced by ANPR but are not part of the Congestion Charge scheme.

Text at the top of the image reads "Temporary Congestion Charge for Cars in Oxford 2025-2026. Any road outside the Central Permit Area can be accessed without passing any traffic filers by using the Ring Road and selecting an approporiate exit junction (matching colours on this map)."

A key at the bottom matches the filter types, with text "Traffic Filters. Hollow Way & Marston Ferry Road 7-9am and 3-6pm. St Cross Road, Hythe Bridge Street, Thames Street and St Clements, 7am-7pm. £5 daily permit covers all Congestion Charge filters. Free Permits available. For example for residents, business use, health and car, SEND and disabilty. Congestion Charge permits do not apply for other filters, such as High Street or in East Oxford/Cowley."

Small print reads "Full details at https://www.oxfordshire.gov.uk/transport-and-travel" and "©@sjgower Contains OpenStreetMap data © OpenStreetMap contributors. Locations of highway filters are approximate and for overview purposes only. v1.3"

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Shai @shaiuk.bsky.social · 10/10/2025

The man didn’t research so you don’t have to. 3kg of sweets in 3 days is likely bad for your health. Important pre-Halloween EBM.

bbc.co.uk

Barnsley man in hospital after three-day cola bottles binge

Nathan Rimmington ate his way through 3kg of sweets - and doctors were shocked he survived.

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