Banburyshire villagers dismayed at losing sight of bypass pin hopes on a weight restriction

West Northants Council leaders last week declared a long-held plan to build a bypass similar to Middleton Cheney’s, is "undeliverable”. It is still available on the council website here.

Farthinghoe is one of a number of Northamptonshire traffic schemes to be deferred or scrapped.

Farthinghoe Parish Council chairman Mick Morris said: "We have waited in vain for almost a year for a promised report from West Northants Council (WNC) Highways about an interim weight restriction to be considered for the A422 within Farthinghoe. Our request three months ago to WNC CEO for more information about the report’s delay has also been totally ignored.”

A number of accidents and vehicles having to back up to allow others through, have happened on one particularly acute bend at the Banbury end of the village.

Mr Morris said a weight limit would eliminate most of the serious problems of huge HGVs travelling through the village.

“The Parish Council believes such a Weight Restriction would deliver 80 per cent of projected bypass benefits without most of the upheaval the building of a bypass causes,” said Mr Morris.

"I have heard it said many times and in numerous places that, had our traffic problems been within the 30mph limits of Northampton, they would have been solved by now. This is more about WNC finances than it is about the veracity of our need. The truth is there is no political will and it seems that even our MP cannot get replies from them.”

Local democracy reporter Nadia Lincoln writes: Several major traffic mitigation schemes across West Northamptonshire have been deferred or scrapped completely, as the council has laid out its priority projects in its Local Transport Plan (LTP).

The plan, which went out to public consultation as a draft last summer, will serve as a baseline for priority highways and transport improvements for the next 20 years. On January 13, WNC discussed a list of projects that will not be carried forward within the LTP.

The report highlighted a number of issues raised across multiple consultation responses and clarified the future of those schemes in the plan. Bypasses for Farthinghoe and Cold Ashby were thrown out.

Cllr Phil Larratt, cabinet member for highways, told members that there is “not enough money in the pot” to carry out all the upgrades due to inflation.

Several representations were received around the importance of the two village bypasses within the LTP consultation last year, however papers state that neither requests will be taken forward. Instead, the transport plan suggests an A422 traffic mitigation scheme at Farthinghoe and a traffic calming programme within Cold Ashby.

Cllr Larratt said the plans for a Farthinghoe bypass “do not stack up” despite the authority’s attempts to create a business case. He added that the Cold Ashby request “falls into the same pot” and wouldn’t be deliverable.

Following feedback from the Place and Overview Scrutiny Committee meeting, WNC’s Cabinet will be asked to support the LTP’s adoption at Full Council in March 2025. This will be the first transport plan created by the new unitary council and will replace the 2012 plan of the former Northamptonshire County Council.