A45 Pedestrian Crossing Application Declined Once Again!

July 1st 2026

A recent application for a pedestrian crossing on the A45 at Upper Dodford has once again been refused. This was the fourth such unsuccessful  application in my 7 year tenure with the Parish Meeting, and was made in response to the increasing volumes of traffic now being experienced on the A45 resulting from the rapid expansion of housing and industrial development in Daventry.

The refusal was based on statistics provided by Stagecoach for the number of  bus passengers using the Dodford bus stops in a six month period (297), with no allowance made for non bus related crossings. All previous attempts have also failed on lack of ‘perceived’ footfall to justify the capital cost of providing a crossing.

I have written to Highways advising them of several local factors of which they are unaware, in an attempt to have our case re-considered. One particular point I raised was why a substantial capital investment had been made to put put three traffic calming islands in Flore village after the village had been relieved of A45 traffic following the opening of the bypass in 2017. This seems a reasonable argument, given that our residents are regularly risking their lives crossing the A45.

I will provide further updates on this important topic.

Colin Newton – Chairman