The Department for Transport's list, published 23 October, names the A31 Farnham Corridor among 15 road schemes removed. What it meant for Hickley's Corner.

The government has confirmed in writing that the A31 Farnham Corridor scheme is dead. The Department for Transport published its list of road schemes removed from its funding programme on 23 October, and the A31 Farnham Corridor is on it (DfT, October 2026 update).

The scheme was meant to rebuild the Coxbridge and Shepherd and Flock roundabouts and make Hickley’s Corner safer to cross. Surrey County Council had been working on it since at least 2021.

What the government has published

The DfT reviewed 41 schemes in its Major Road Network and Large Local Majors programme. Its update says 16 were confirmed in March 2026 to go ahead, subject to business case approvals.

Of the rest:

  • 10 were withdrawn because the council promoting them could no longer afford its share
  • 15 were “removed from the programme” once the review was finalised, the A31 Farnham Corridor among them

The A31 is in the second group, so the DfT does not say Surrey pulled out. The department lists the factors its review weighed:

  • whether a scheme was affordable to local councils and to central government
  • how soon it could be delivered
  • its overall value for money
  • how well it fits the government’s priorities, including economic growth and housing

It gives no reason for any individual scheme. The other schemes removed with Farnham’s include the A350 Melksham Bypass, the A509 Isham Bypass and City Centre Road in Portsmouth.

How Farnham found out

The local MP, Gregory Stafford, says the roads minister, Justin Madders, telephoned him on the evening of Thursday 8 October to confirm the scheme would not go ahead. His statement the next day says the government blamed the timetable for local government reorganisation: Waverley and Surrey County Council are being replaced by new councils in April 2027. He put the scheme’s earlier estimated cost at around £115 million and called the decision “a betrayal”.

The same statement carries a quote from Surrey County Council’s leader, Tim Oliver:

“The case for action has not changed. The congestion, safety concerns and impact on the communities along the A31 remain.”

Farnham Town Council issued its own statement on 13 October, expressing “profound disappointment”. It said the road is “now approaching capacity”, and that any verge, drainage or roadworks on the A31 leave the town centre with “severe congestion and gridlock”.

What the scheme would have done

Surrey County Council’s project page says the A31 “cuts Farnham into two parts”, separating the south of the town from the station, the centre and the north. The plan was to upgrade the Coxbridge and Shepherd and Flock roundabouts with:

  • layout changes
  • traffic lights on some approaches
  • lane widening
  • better crossings for people walking and cycling

The page also lists aims to improve walking and cycling at Hickley’s Corner, reduce the impact of the level crossing and tackle air quality.

The scheme had cleared one stage. Surrey sent a Strategic Outline Business Case to the DfT in November 2021, and it was approved in late 2023. The next step was an Outline Business Case, with a full public consultation. That consultation never happened.

Surrey’s page, last reviewed on 19 June 2026, still describes the scheme as live and says “an application is being made” for DfT funding.

Hickley’s Corner

The town council says its “primary concern” is pedestrian safety at Hickley’s Corner, where the A31 meets the road from the station to the town centre. It said that after “three recent tragic incidents” it backed a community initiative to put up temporary signs warning people crossing.

It has asked Surrey County Council to “continue its safety audit” of the crossing and put in measures so people can cross “safely and with greater confidence”.

What it means for you

Nothing will be built on the A31 through Farnham as part of this scheme. The Coxbridge and Shepherd and Flock roundabouts and Hickley’s Corner stay as they are. No replacement funding has been announced.

The separate town centre works, on Castle Street, The Borough and West Street, are a separate project within the Farnham Infrastructure Programme and are not on the DfT’s list. For this week’s closures, see our Farnham roadworks and travel page.

The decision on what to try next will sit with West Surrey Council, which takes over from Waverley and Surrey County Council’s services in this area on 1 April 2027. Both the MP and the county council leader have said they will keep pressing for the scheme.

Sources