Watch how traffic tries to negotiate a 10mph bend in Banburyshire village. Residents furious that transport plan ignores bypass again

West Nothants Council (WNC) continues to deny Farthinghoe a bypass, even though the previous MP described it as a ‘top priority’.

The West Northants Local Transport Plan is out for public consultation which ends on October 17.

Farthinghoe parish council (FPC) believes WNC intends to consign the 35-year-old bypass campaign to history. Other villages, including Middleton Cheney, had bypasses built years ago but Farthinghoe still suffers huge vehicles negotiating its narrow streets.

Plans for a ‘weight restriction’ alternative have been mooted but Farthinghoe is still waiting for details of how it would work. Residents are angry that money given to Northants from the abandoned HS2 north fund has been given to road schemes elsewhere.

Meanwhile residents are filming horrendous snarl-ups, lorries colliding on the bend (one demolishing a telegraph pole) and – here – two articulated lorries performing ‘synchronised’ dancing trying to pass.

National Highways has designated the A422 and A43 as a diversion in the event of an M40 closure. FPC says it was not consulted or informed of any risk assessment to ensure the road was fit for purpose.

Another WNC alternative was a traffic light system in the village. FPC says traffic lights would make the problems worse.

Mick Morris, FPC chairman, said villagers fear fumes and noise from and constant radio programmes and telephone calls when queues inevitably form.

“Traffic jams during road repairs have given us this for days at a time, many times a year,” said Mr Morris.

“We had serious reservations about the scheme in 2021 and asked questions, as did our MP. Responses were promised in February 2022. We are still waiting,” he said. “We are still talking about ‘Infrastructure after Development’ 35 years after the development took place. Little wonder there’s no detail of the bypass in the draft Local Transport Plan.

“It appears the answer is for WNC officers to impose traffic lights by stealth, wrapped in 135 pages of jargon. FPC has already made very clear to councillors we do not want this option.

"They say it will speed up getting a bypass and ‘there is no gain without pain’. The pain is the absolute chaos it will bring to residents and all who use the A422. They believe this chaos will enable WNC to bring pressure on the Department for Transport to fund a bypass with WNC risking £500,000 - £1,000,000 on the gamble.

“Farthinghoe, as a small village, has been left to fight for this bypass alone but the benefit is not just for Farthinghoe residents. There is a huge benefit for the 12,000 vehicles per day who pass through the village including commercial transport which helps drive the economies of Northamptonshire, Oxfordshire, Buckinghamshire and further afield, along with daily commuter and domestic traffic.

“It’s time for everyone to join in and help us win this fight. We have councillors who say they support us and officers who clearly don’t. Who runs this council, those we elect or those we pay to take care of our needs?”