Oxford A40 junction crash sparks urgent speed limit call
The junction where a child and a woman were hit is by the Headington McDonald's and is where the road intersects with the A420 and the Eastern Bypass Road. That is referred to as the Headington junction. The second is to the north-west and is where Barton Fields Road intersects with the A40.
Member of the public Rosemary Mecklenburgh and Councillor Glynis Phillips are both referring to that. Concerns have been expressed about the Headington junction where the A40 intersects with North Way and Eastern Bypass Road. 
This follows an incident on Tuesday, April 14 which saw two people, one a young child, seriously injured. This occurred at just after noon on Tuesday when the South Central Ambulance Service was called to the collision between two pedestrians and a van. A spokesperson said: "We sent two ambulances and the Thames Valley Air Ambulance critical care response vehicle to the incident.
"The pedestrians were an adult female and an approximately three-year-old child. "They had sustained serious but not life-threatening injuries and following initial treatment at the scene both were then taken to the John Radcliffe Hospital." 
Local councillors Chewe Munkonge, Roz Smith and Glynis Phillips all shared their hopes that the child and woman make a full recovery. Labour politician Mr Munkonge - who is set to become the mayor of Oxford in May - acknowledged "longstanding concerns" about the Headington junction and that many residents might be feeling "anxious" about the intersection. He said: "This incident only reinforces the need to address them with urgency.
"I will be raising this matter directly with the county council, as the highways authority, to ensure that safety at this junction is thoroughly reviewed and that appropriate action is taken to prevent anything like this from happening again." 
She said: "Obviously we will need to see the police and highway reports, but my concerns for pedestrians' safety crossing the busy A40 road remain. "I continue to call for the A40 30mph speed limit to be extended to the Sandhills and Thornhill junction." A spokesperson for Oxfordshire County Council[2] said: "Our thoughts are with those injured in this collision.
"Our Vision Zero road safety team is always looking at ways to improve safety on the county's highways and we will analyse the results of the police's investigation into the incident when we receive it." Near to the Headington Junction, there has been a long term campaign related to the A40 London Road's crossing point with Barton Fields Road. Barton Park resident Rosemary Mecklenburgh said there has been a local campaign to reduce the dangerousness of the crossing since 2019.
She highlighted a number of incidents over the past few years including the attendance of ambulances in December 2025 and June 2024, car crashes in July 2024 and August 2023, and events that saw public infrastructure damaged including in July 2024. Ms Mecklenburgh said: "We have demanded better phasing of the crossing lights for pedestrians, speed and red-light enforcement cameras, better signage, protective infrastructure for pedestrians around the crossing and the lowering of the speed limit to 30mph." "Nothing has happened and the incidents continue," she added.
Local councillor Ms Phillips said that safety needs to be made a priority.
She said: "I have been campaigning for years about dangerous junctions on the ring round and asking for speed cameras at the Barton Park junction and a pedestrian crossing on the A40 between Barton and Risinghurst."
References
- ^ Geography teacher who fiddled grades wants banning order overturned (www.oxfordmail.co.uk)
- ^ Oxfordshire County Council (www.oxfordshire.gov.uk)
- ^ Listed 400-year-old hotel up for sale after closure (www.oxfordmail.co.uk)