A Reform UK-controlled council may have pleasantly surprised the cycling community when it championed a new active travel scheme in Northampton earlier this month. But that hasn’t stopped local motorists criticising the local authority’s cycle-friendly plans, with some claiming the bike lane works have already caused traffic “carnage” and prompted rat-running drivers to “bomb” through residential streets.
At the start of June, we reported that Reform-led West Northamptonshire Council diverted from its party’s national policy on cycling by endorsing the Abington Active Travel Scheme, which will see new protected cycle lanes constructed along Bridgewater Drive and Park Avenue in Northampton, alongside upgrades to footpaths and pavements.
The latest phase of the project is due to finish in the autumn and will cost £4.7m, funded through the Active Travel Fund, the UK Shared Prosperity Fund, and local transport grants.
According to the council, the scheme will strengthen links between residential areas, schools, and local facilities, while also improving access to Abington Park and Northampton town centre.
Reform says the project is intended to “encourage more people to choose walking, wheeling, and cycling for everyday journeys, helping to reduce congestion, and cut carbon emissions while promoting healthier lifestyles”.
“This next phase of the Abington Active Travel Scheme will make a positive difference to how people get around this part of Northampton. By creating safer and more accessible routes, we are making it easier for people to walk, wheel, and cycle as part of their everyday journeys,” the council’s cabinet member for highways and transport, Richard Butler, said in a statement announcing the new works, which commenced at the start of this week.
However, the scheme and its associated roadworks (which are expected to last 18 weeks) have already attracted fierce criticism from opposition councillors and residents on social media, who claim they have caused “chaos” and “absolute carnage” in the town.
“What is the council thinking? Abington Park Crescent closed. Park Avenue closed. It is chaos out there. Billing Road gridlocked. Wellingborough Road at a standstill,” one local posted.
“All side roads are a nightmare as people try to cut through. Surely these works could have waited until the six-week school holiday? Not exactly priority works.”
“It was chaos yesterday when the school chucked out, all the parents in their unnecessarily large cars coupled with the diverted traffic,” another said.
“It was appalling this morning, I have never seen anything like it,” said a disgruntled motorist. “Totally gridlocked. Whoever has given the green light needs sacking.”
Meanwhile, there have also been complaints about rat-running since the works began, with one resident writing: “Landcross Road is now like a rat run, cars bomb through there. Surprised that there hasn’t been a smash there or somebody hasn’t been knocked down yet.”
Labour councillors Bob Purser and Zoe Smith told the Northampton Chronicle this week that they have been contacted by several residents complaining about the traffic issues, with some claiming that their vehicles have been damaged due to rat-runners.
“I have visited the effected roads and am very concerned about the impact the diversions are having on residential streets,” Purser said.
“I have had reports of residents’ cars being damaged as drivers seek to negotiate these narrow streets. It has been chaos around Northampton School for Boys in Billing Road at both the start and end of the school day.
“Residents are also concerned about the safety of children and parents crossing at the junction of Bridgewater Drive and Abington Park Crescent where other works are taking place.
“Although notice was given of the closure of Park Avenue South, as a result all the traffic which uses Park Avenue, both north and south, from Park Avenue has been using Barry Road, Ardington Road, Landcross Drive and Watersmeet.
“These roads are not suitable for through traffic. More planning was required by Highways for drivers to take appropriate alternative routes. I have written to the Highways calling for action to be taken and am still awaiting a reply.”
In response to the complaints, Butler pointed out that the cycle lane proposals received widespread public support during the consultation process, arguing that they “set out a clear and practical approach to improving transport across West Northamptonshire”.
He continued: “They will support better connections between our communities, encourage more sustainable travel and help create cleaner, healthier places.
“Importantly, they have been shaped by the views of our residents and partners. We’ve listened carefully to the feedback we received and made changes so the plans reflect what matters most to local people and can deliver real benefits both now and in the future.”
Reform UK swept to power in last year’s West Northamptonshire Council elections, winning 42 seats in the historically Conservative-supporting area and have subsequently governed as a majority administration.
Having previously stood unsuccessfully for election as an independent, and served on Brackley town council, Butler was elected as a West Northamptonshire councillor for the town last year, and was subsequently appointed to the cabinet. He was also appointed as a director of West Midlands Rail.
On the same day he announced that work was set to commence on Abington’s new cycle lanes earlier this month, Butler also unveiled a series of cycling-related events, many arranged in partnership with British Cycling, including bike repair sessions and guided rides, with the aim of “encouraging people to enjoy the health and wellbeing benefits of getting on a bike”.
He described the events as “a simple, affordable way to boost your health and wellbeing, while also helping to reduce congestion and improve air quality across our communities” and said the Reform-led council was “pleased to be working with our partners to make it easier for people to get active and travel sustainably”.
Butler’s stance on cycling appears at odds with the policy and pronouncements of his national party and its leader Nigel Farage, who has been sceptical and hostile of both active travel investment and road safety policy more broadly, Farage previously criticising the “tens of millions being spent on cycle lanes that no one uses” by councils that are “on the verge of bankruptcy”.
2 thoughts on “Reform UK accused of causing gridlock “chaos” and forcing rat-running drivers to “bomb” through narrow streets thanks to new cycle lane works”
Even better, there’s a 4 hour rolling road block on this afternoon as the carnival parade travels through the town.
Those on social media complaining about this work have known about it for months and despite what they may claim, they are not the silent majority but a vocal minority.
“Landcross Road is now like a rat run, cars bomb through there. Surprised that there hasn’t been a smash there or somebody hasn’t been knocked down yet.”
Is that a vote for a modal filter there? Or – better – seeing how this could be fitted into a broader pattern of LTNs for residents?
Or even starting a conversation on what they expect from travel locally / regionally and how could that be delivered. If the answer is – predictably – “like now but driving is more convenient” how much is that *really* going to cost / affect them going forward?
Spoiler – they might well get lucky and have a few more years of “help for the hard- pressed motorist”. (Particularly through the influence of Reform moving the conversation at a national level). But with more people here, more bills from people living longer (and all the other changes, the wars we’re paying for…) the *real* costs of mass motoring may come back to bite pretty soon.