Plan for new dual carriageway on M40 in Warwickshire

Warwickshire County Council wants to build the new road near the Jaguar Land Rover headquarters just north of Gaydon, creating a new link between the B4451 (Gaydon Road) and the B4100 (Wade Lane) and preventing traffic from streaming through the village.

The plan is separate to a Highways Agency project to make improvements to the nearby junction 12 of the M40 - but the county council says it has been designed with this other project in mind.

Gaydon parish council has objected to the plan, stating that it could cause “light pollution” to villagers - at a time when its parish plan shows that villagers have asked for there to be less lighting in the village.

But Warwick District Council’s environmental health officer has said the lighting scheme does not present an environmental health concern to Gaydon - and district council officers, stating they have no objection to the plans, have said: “A safety audit carried out found that lane designations and arrow markings may not be as visible when relying on vehicle headlights alone.

“Furthermore, a lack of street lighting could present a problem to cyclists and pedestrians using the shared route at night. Cyclists and pedestrians may not see each other and could collide.

“Clearly, highway safety with any new road scheme is of paramount importance.”