Warning of road closures and disruption in Banburyshire to make way for 'Harry Dunn' safety improvements

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Motorists are warned about a series of road closures and disruption across the Banbury area to make way for safety improvements following the tragic death of Harry Dunn.

One of the most prominent locations is the M40 at junction 11 (Banbury) where there will be a week of night time lane closures, traffic speed controls and motorway slip road closures (see below for full details).

Other areas on the list to get changes to roads include Deddington, Bloxham, Middleton Cheney, Adderbury, Bodicote, Baynards Green and Newton Purcell.

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The works have been organised through a collaboration between highways authorities and the government following the death of Harry Dunn, caused by an American driver who drove on the wrong side of the road outside the RAF Croughton base in 2019.

Harry Dunn who was killed in 2019 when a car driven on the wrong side of the road collided with his motorcycleHarry Dunn who was killed in 2019 when a car driven on the wrong side of the road collided with his motorcycle
Harry Dunn who was killed in 2019 when a car driven on the wrong side of the road collided with his motorcycle

A spokesman for Oxfordshire Highways Authority said: “In August 2019, a fatal road traffic collision occurred near to RAF Croughton in which a visiting United States citizen driving on the wrong side of the road collided with a motorbike, causing the rider to be fatally injured.

“The Transport Secretary subsequently committed to a review of highway safety around both RAF Croughton in Northamptonshire and RAF Barford St John in Oxfordshire. Both Oxfordshire and Northamptonshire County Councils have worked with the Department for Transport to determine a package of works to enhance highway safety.

“This work is part of the United States Visiting Forces (USVF) safety project, which includes all local routes likely to be regularly used by USAF drivers, including into local centres such as Banbury and Bicester, as well as routes between RAF Croughton and RAF Barford St John.”

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The package of measures being carried out in Oxfordshire includes resurfacing, upgrades to road markings and signage (ensuring wherever possible that such roadside installations are ‘passively safe’ – designed to reduce the risk of injury in an accident – in the event of a collision) vegetation clearance, reductions to speed limits and some traffic-calming measures.

The M40 roundabout at the junction of the A422 Banbury to Brackley Road which will be affected by roadworks next monthThe M40 roundabout at the junction of the A422 Banbury to Brackley Road which will be affected by roadworks next month
The M40 roundabout at the junction of the A422 Banbury to Brackley Road which will be affected by roadworks next month

The routes are:

B4031 Northants boundary to Deddington Crossroads; Deddington Crossroads to Barford St John; B4031 Northants boundary to A4260 Berry Hill Road junction, Adderbury; Berry Hill Road to Barford Road, Bloxham; Barford Road Bloxham between Milton Road and RAF Barford St John; A422 Middleton Cheney Bypass and Oxfordshire boundary to M40, Junction 11.

M40 Junction 11 to A422 Wildmere Roundabout; A422 Hennef Way between Wildmere Roundabout and Southam Road including Concord Avenue; A4260 Adderbury between Aynho Road and Twyford Road; A4260 between Adderbury and Bodicote and The Hawthorns junction off A4260 Oxford Road, Banbury.

A421 Oxfordshire boundary to A4421 Finmere Roundabout; A4421 between Newton Purcell and A4095 Buckingham Road roundabout; B4100 between A43 Baynards Green roundabout and Stoke Lyne turn; B4100 between Stoke Lyne turn and A4095 Banbury Road roundabout and B4100 between Banbury Road roundabout and Lucerne Avenue roundabout.

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The work at Junction 11 of the M40 involves resurfacing the junction and replacing road markings with a highly-durable material that should last much longer than the existing material.

Main surfacing works are scheduled to begin on February 24 for seven overnight shifts (excluding weekends), with working hours from 7.30pm – 6am.

Throughout this period, junction 11 will be subject to lane closures with traffic speeds controlled by convoy working (escorted past works at 10mph). In addition, the junctions with the A361, A422 and M40 slip roads (on and off) will be subject to discrete road closures to aid safety and efficiency.

The current schedule is as follows:

Monday, February 24 and Tuesday, February 25 – Closure of A361 junction, M40 southbound off slip and northbound on slip; Wednesday, February 26 and Thursday, February 27 – Closure of A422 junction, M40 northbound off-slip and southbound on-slip.

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On the remaining shifts there are no planned closures (lane closures with convoy only). There will also be follow up works to complete the re-installation of traffic loops; duration is to be confirmed but will be completed under lane closures only without any speed restriction.

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