A5 Towcester improvements

The A5 in Towcester has longstanding issues with the high levels of traffic passing through its historic town centre, causing environmental, safety and accessibility concerns to residents and businesses. We’ve now been able to develop options to help improve Towcester town centre.

Start date TBC

End date TBC

Cost TBC

Latest updates

06 June 2023

Preferred Scheme Announcement

Following our options consultation last summer, we’ve incorporated the feedback we received and will be taking Option A forward to the next stage.

This scheme will benefit Towcester by improving road safety, accessibility, air quality and noise impact by reducing traffic through the town centre. It will also support economic growth by making the high street through Towcester a more attractive place to visit and preserve the history and identity of the town.

You can find more information on the scheme, including what changes we made and our plans here: A5 Towcester Preferred Option

The next step will be updating our business case to help secure the funding needed to complete the final design stage and deliver the scheme.
19 December 2022
Consultation Report

The A5 in Towcester has longstanding issues with the high levels of traffic particularly heavy goods vehicles passing through the town centre, causing environmental, safety and accessibility concerns to residents and businesses.

We designed three options to improve the A5 through Towcester, with the following objectives:
- improve safety for all
- reduce the impact of air and noise pollution on surrounding environments and habitats
- increase the number of trips made in Towcester by walking and cycling
- help boost the local economy through increased trade and footfall
- make Towcester’s High Street an attractive place to visit
- improve accessibility to Towcester town centre for everyone
- preserve Towcester’s rich history and identity
From 15 August 2022 to 11 September 2022, we held a consultation on our proposals to find out which option you preferred. During the consultation period we held face-to-face and online events with members of the team who were on hand to explain our proposals and answer any questions regarding our planned improvements.

We've now analysed the responses we received and have produced a consultation report on our findings. The results show that Option A was the most popular option and proposed the most significant changes to the town including:
- narrowing the road at key junctions
- removing most of the town centre parking, except for disabled parking, to create a public amenity area
- introducing additional pedestrian crossings
- building new footpaths and cycleways
- making the road into a ‘shared space’ through the town centre
Next steps
- The considerations will be used to design a preferred option
- The preferred option will then be taken forward into a more detailed development
If you have any queries about our consultation report, feel free to contact the team a5towcester@jacobs.com.
21 October 2022

Consultation Update

Thank you to all those who attended our consultation events in the summer. It was great to speak with so many of you to understand your views and concerns about our proposed plans for the scheme.

We're currently analysing your responses and will publish a report that will highlight what you think of our proposed options and how you'd like us to proceed.

We'll update the webpage once we've completed the report. In the meantime if you have any queries, feel free to contact the team a5towcester@jacobs.com.
13 August 2022
Consultation Launch

We'll be holding public consultation events about the improvement work we'd like to carry out along the A5 in Towcester. We’d like to invite you to come along to find out more about our proposals and give your view.

We'll be holding public consultations from Monday 15 August to Sunday 11 September.

To find out about the planned improvements, please read our consultation brochure.

Come to one of our in person events
- Wednesday 31 August 2022 from 10:00am to 7:00pm
  Sawpits Centre, Towcester NN12 6FT
- Monday 5 September 2022 from Noon to 7:00pm
  Waitrose car park, Richmond Road, Towcester NN12 6HZ
- Tuesday 6 September 2022 from 9:00am to 2:00pm
  Aldi car park, Old Greens Norton Road, Towcester NN12 8AX
Come to one of our online events

We’re holding online events via Microsoft Teams. The project team will explain our plans for the A5 and answer any questions you might have.
- August 17^th – 7:00pm-8:30pm
- August 24^th – 7:00pm-8:30pm
To book onto these sessions please email your name and the date of the online event you would like to attend to a5towcester@jacobs.com and we’ll provide you with further details and the event link.

Give us your view

Your feedback is important to us, so please share your ideas, concerns and local knowledge with us.

Give your views on our citizen space consultation webpage.

See more updates

Project information

The main objectives of the scheme are:

to improve safety for all
to reduce the impact of air and noise pollution on surrounding environments and habitats
to increase the number of trips made in Towcester by walking and cycling
to help boost the local economy through increased trade and footfall
to make Towcester’s high street an attractive place to visit
to improve accessibility to Towcester town centre for everyone
to preserve Towcester’s rich history and identity

This proposed scheme aims to encourage through traffic, and in particular goods vehicles, to use the new link road and the A43 as an alternative to the A5. This will alleviate some of the more disruptive traffic from the town centre, improving accessibility and quality of life in Towcester.

A5 Towcester Preferred Option Announcement - June 2023

Consultation documents for the A5 Towcester