Safety improvements to A43 endorsed by South Northamptonshire Council

A series of potential improvement works to the A43 have been endorsed by South Northampton shire Council in a bid to help unlock the area's growth potential and improve its safety.

The council has commissioned WSP to undertake a growth study of the A43 corridor between junction 10 of the M40 and junction 15A of the M1.

Recommendations among a 58-point action plan include closing eight gaps in the central reservation where right turning traffic can cross the road.

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The report states: “The route has a relatively high frequency of junctions of variable standards, including eight locations where right-turning vehicles can cross the central reservation, resulting in a high number of potential accident locations.”

Other potential schemes in the approved action plan include carriageway widening, a new express A43 corridor bus service between Northampton and Oxford, variable speed limits and a public transport interchange and ‘Pod Parking’ at Silverstone Park.

Andrew Bowe, the council’s lead officer for strategic transport, said: “This is the culmination of some big work.

“The key issues that came out were the level of congestion along certain sections of the A43. There is some quite significant congestion at peak times, particularly around the Towcester area.

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“And the standard of some of the junctions has also been raised. There are concerns of safety, and that there may be a series of collisions if the situation remains as it is.

“There’s a strong case for investment in improvements.”

Councillor Ann Addison added: “The A43 is something this council has looked at for many years, and we feel very passionately about it.

“We have a colleague’s mother who has been killed, and we don’t want anything like this to happen again. And we’re not going to let it go until we see a response.”

As well as safety improvements, the Growth Strategy emphasises the important role that the market towns and rural areas in the study area will play in delivering growth.

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The report says: “Improved connectivity and accessibility along the corridor will be vital to supporting and unlocking wider growth in the region.

“Therefore there is a strong case for investment in short, medium and long term transport improvements that improve the A43 route capacity, reliability, resilience, journey times and travel choices.”