The Ock Street Bus Shelter with Its Own Biosphere

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The Victoria Road bus shelter (on Ock Street) has been in place for nearly a year, having been installed by Abingdon Town Council. Unless you are in the habit of inspecting bus shelters, you may not have noticed anything unusual about it. At ground level, only a green fringe is visible — a hint that something botanical is taking place above your head.

From above, however (from nearby flats or the upper deck of the X2 bus), the roof reveals a small ecosystem. It is carpeted with vegetation, mostly sedum — a low-growing succulent that thrives in dry, sunny conditions, requires little maintenance, and does not need mowing or feeding. The plants absorb rainwater and provide nectar for passing bees.

The dry, straw-like remains of another plant suggest the roof may be quietly biodiversifying. Whether this was planned or is the work of a botanical hitchhiker is unclear, but it is interesting to discover that a bus shelter can develop a biosphere.

The Marcham Road Leaning Pine

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This mature pine leans a branch above the traffic of the A415.

At first glance it appears precarious — as though the next named storm might bring it down. But a look back at Google Street View from June 2008 shows the tree had this shape nearly two decades ago.

Pines often grow into wind-shaped forms, but in this case the outline may owe more to the gradual loss of other branches over the years. What remains is an ivy-clad trunk and a strong side-leaning branch.

In Albert Park, among other leaning pines, it would not catch the eye. Here, however, it is quite a feature leaning above a busy road.

Gold in the Oxfam Window

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In the window of Oxfam – Bury Street, Abingdon, two mannequins framed by Union Jacks have been there throughout the Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics. A light box says: GOOD LUCK TEAM GB. One mannequin has a gold medal.

Historically, Britain has not won many Winter Olympic gold medals, which makes each one memorable.

Men’s team – curling (1924)
Men’s team – ice hockey (1936)
Jeannette Altwegg – figure skating (1952)
Robin Dixon and Tony Nash – bobsleigh (1964)
John Curry – figure skating (1976)
Robin Cousins – figure skating (1980)
Jayne Torvill and Christopher Dean – figure skating (1984)
Women’s team – curling (2002)
Amy Williams – skeleton (2010)
Lizzy Yarnold – skeleton (2014 and 2018)
Women’s team – curling (2022)

For many of my generation, the run of figure skating golds between 1976 and 1984 were a highlight.

This year Team GB are surpassing all previous Winter Olympic performances, with three gold medals already:
Matt Weston – skeleton (2026)
Charlotte Bankes and Huw Nightingale – mixed snowboard cross (2026)
Matt Weston and Tabby Stoecker – mixed skeleton (2026)

There is even the chance of another gold, with the men’s curling team through to the final.

Queues Return – Briefly – to West St Helen Street

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Looking out of the window at around 11 am, there was a queue of traffic heading up West St Helen Street. One driver said she had not moved for 15 minutes. This was the first traffic problem in the street after weeks of relative quiet during the road closure, and it occurred during half term, when traffic is usually lighter.

On this occasion, the disruption was caused by an accident or medical emergency.

Traffic tailed back along Bridge Street, Stert Street, The Vineyard, and Stratton Way.

Within about an hour the incident had been dealt with and traffic was moving freely again. For a while, a person from the company who look after the car parks on behalf of Vale of White Horse District Council took on the role of directing traffic at the junction of West St Helen Street.