Upgrade A27

[Half Time Pies]

How do I explain Eastbourne? Eastbourne is lovely. I live here. Fantastic situation, close to Brighton, which I love, cheaper, wonderful seafront and downs, what's not to like? One of the lowest crime rates for a large town in England and certainly quieter than the 6 or so places I lived in previously when I was exiled in Liverpool. Town centre needs an upgrade which is happening, although I couldn't really care less about that personally as the internet is for shopping.

As someone who grew up in Eastbourne and owns a business there I feel like I am well placed to add a bit of perspective which is somewhere between the original post and your reply. Whilst there are areas of Eastbourne that are lovely my opinion is that much of the town has gone downhill and my perception is that some of the areas have become incredibly dodgy and much worse than when I was growing up.

The main problem is that Eastbourne and Hailsham has seen a huge increase in house building and population but has not seen the improvements needed in local services to accommodate this increase. The road network is terrible, parking is a nightmare, the local NHS services have been decimated and the Eastbourne DGH is a complete joke. There are also a lack of large businesses operating out of Eastbourne and therefore diversity of jobs, when I got to 18 I had to leave the town as the only available jobs were in Hospitality, Catering or Care. I don't see that this has changed much although hopefully the improvements to the A27 if approved will help matters along with the building of more business parks and enterprise centres such as Chaucer in Polegate and the one at the Sovereign Harbour.

 

[Giraffe]

The Worthing debate is an interesting one. Lots of people argued in the 1980's that expanding the existing A27 around Worthing was a "thru pass" not a by pass. But that was bollocks then and is bollocks now. Whilst the borough boundary may be at the start of Findon Valley, it is very clear to anyone that Worthing doesn't start until South of the A27. The widening of the road all the way along the Worthing section of the A27 is the only viable option and the sooner they get on with it the better, as that will be TOTAL carnage when they do it.

 

[Bozza]

The Worthing debate is an interesting one. Lots of people argued in the 1980's that expanding the existing A27 around Worthing was a "thru pass" not a by pass. But that was bollocks then and is bollocks now. Whilst the borough boundary may be at the start of Findon Valley, it is very clear to anyone that Worthing doesn't start until South of the A27. The widening of the road all the way along the Worthing section of the A27 is the only viable option and the sooner they get on with it the better, as that will be TOTAL carnage when they do it.

Cobblers.

However, you'll be pleased to hear that my route for the true bypass doesn't come through your back garden. It misses by a good 50 metres.

 

[Giraffe]

Cobblers.

However, you'll be pleased to hear that my route for the true bypass doesn't come through your back garden. It misses by a good 50 metres.

I was waiting for that! I'll be phoning swampy if you turn up with your diggers.

The problem is how and where does it go? If you use the Long Furlong where next? People used to talk about a tunnel under Cissbury Ring but I can't see how you get it there, and even then it would be a massively expensive project.

The A29 answer interests me. Could they bring it wide round South of Horsham and back onto the Shoreham Flyover somehow? The Steyning road?

Hard to see any perfect answer that doesn't either piss off A27 (and near A27) residents or causes massive environmental damage.

 

[Bozza]

I was waiting for that! I'll be phoning swampy if you turn up with your diggers.

The problem is how and where does it go? If you use the Long Furlong where next? People used to talk about a tunnel under Cissbury Ring but I can't see how you get it there, and even then it would be a massively expensive project.

The A29 answer interests me. Could they bring it wide round South of Horsham and back onto the Shoreham Flyover somehow? The Steyning road?

Hard to see any perfect answer that doesn't either piss off A27 (and near A27) residents or causes massive environmental damage.

Agree with all of that.

The width of the A27 through Worthing doesn't strike me as the issue, at least not the main one. The problem is the number of stop/start points, both the big three junctions - A24 roundabout, Hill Barn roundabout and Lyons Farm traffic lights and the numerous side roads with traffic pulling in and out. This all slows things down massively as local traffic mixes with through traffic.

Through traffic needs to be taken right out of the equation with, ideally, only two or three places for traffic to drop into Worthing. These would be on/off ramps and not roundabouts or traffic lights.

 

[LamieRobertson]

Agree with all of that.

The width of the A27 through Worthing doesn't strike me as the issue, at least not the main one. The problem is the number of stop/start points, both the big three junctions - A24 roundabout, Hill Barn roundabout and Lyons Farm traffic lights and the numerous side roads with traffic pulling in and out. This all slows things down massively as local traffic mixes with through traffic.

Through traffic needs to be taken right out of the equation with, ideally, only two or three places for traffic to drop into Worthing. These would be on/off ramps and not roundabouts or traffic lights.

Get shot of the traffic lights at what was the Sussex Pad...and the roundabout at Lancing Manor

 

[Giraffe]

Agree with all of that.

The width of the A27 through Worthing doesn't strike me as the issue, at least not the main one. The problem is the number of stop/start points, both the big three junctions - A24 roundabout, Hill Barn roundabout and Lyons Farm traffic lights and the numerous side roads with traffic pulling in and out. This all slows things down massively as local traffic mixes with through traffic.

Through traffic needs to be taken right out of the equation with, ideally, only two or three places for traffic to drop into Worthing. These would be on/off ramps and not roundabouts or traffic lights.

We are now in agreement!

I would put a flyover at the Offington Roundabout. You could probably do this relatively easily as you only need to come from the height of Durrington Hill.

I am sure there is also room to have slip roads off to the North and South at the Hill Barn roundabout and Lyons Farm. Suspect a house or two may be needed to be bought and demolished, but it would only be a handful. You could make it two lanes leading up to and through the Hill Barn section quite easily as well.

I went through a roundabout the other day where there was a road straight through the middle as well as around. I bet they consider this for the Hill Barn roundabout. It worked well where I saw it (possibly near Burton?) but I could see if baffling the oldies and students alike!

 

[Giraffe]

Get shot of the traffic lights at what was the Sussex Pad...and the roundabout at Lancing Manor

Also good shouts. And again on the face of it fairly cheap and simple alternatives to major structural changes.

It's interesting but I am sure I saw a stat that said 80% of the traffic that uses that stretch of the A27 is "local". Not sure on their definition of this, but I guess a large part of the people using it are doing the Worthing to Brighton stretch only.

 

[Notters]

I was waiting for that! I'll be phoning swampy if you turn up with your diggers.

The problem is how and where does it go? If you use the Long Furlong where next? People used to talk about a tunnel under Cissbury Ring but I can't see how you get it there, and even then it would be a massively expensive project.

The A29 answer interests me. Could they bring it wide round South of Horsham and back onto the Shoreham Flyover somehow? The Steyning road?

Hard to see any perfect answer that doesn't either piss off A27 (and near A27) residents or causes massive environmental damage.

See below:

I went through a roundabout the other day where there was a road straight through the middle as well as around. I bet they consider this for the Hill Barn roundabout. It worked well where I saw it (possibly near Burton?) but I could see if baffling the oldies and students alike!

This is called a hamburger junction, they're fairly common.

 

[Notters]

Get shot of the traffic lights at what was the Sussex Pad

Does that include replacing them with a roundabout?! http://www.worthingandadurchamber.co.uk/Local-Interests

 

[Stat Brother]

Also good shouts. And again on the face of it fairly cheap and simple alternatives to major structural changes.

It's interesting but I am sure I saw a stat that said 80% of the traffic that uses that stretch of the A27 is "local". Not sure on their definition of this, but I guess a large part of the people using it are doing the Worthing to Brighton stretch only.

Seeing what's costing £24m around Littlehampton, I don't believe 'fairly cheap' is an option, for any work carried out.

Hence nothing ever being done.

 

[LamieRobertson]

Does that include replacing them with a roundabout?! http://www.worthingandadurchamber.co.uk/Local-Interests

Useful link

 

[Bigtomfu]

Whatever happened to the Dover to Honiton trunk road that always seemed to be discussed in the 1970s?

It's at the final hurdle with just the Vogons left to approve it!

 

[Dick Swiveller]

I went through a roundabout the other day where there was a road straight through the middle as well as around. I bet they consider this for the Hill Barn roundabout. It worked well where I saw it (possibly near Burton?) but I could see if baffling the oldies and students alike!

Carry on down the A27 and you'll hit one on the A31.

 

[Pretty pink fairy]

WHO uses the A27 cycle path the council spent 1 MILLION on a couple of years ago
regards
DR

 

[Dick Swiveller]

WHO uses the A27 cycle path the council spent 1 MILLION on a couple of years ago
regards
DR

Ooooh. I know this one. It's erm, cyclists isn't it?

 

[Spiros]

Also good shouts. And again on the face of it fairly cheap and simple alternatives to major structural changes.

It's interesting but I am sure I saw a stat that said 80% of the traffic that uses that stretch of the A27 is "local". Not sure on their definition of this, but I guess a large part of the people using it are doing the Worthing to Brighton stretch only.

It doesn't surprise me to hear that most of the A27 traffic may be 'local'. In the morning the congestion is on A27/A259/A24 going out of Worthing and in the evening it's the reverse. If you join the queue for the Washington roundabout going northbound at 7:45am you won't get to the roundabout until well past 8 o'clock and all the other approaches are pretty empty. At 6pm the queue southbound starts before Ashington.

The roads aren't the problem, they're just a symptom of the fact that our beloved local council keeps replacing places that provided employment with housing. When Norwich Union left town - that got rid of 800 jobs, Worthing College moved in and hundreds of homes got built on their old site. Then the large ex-Lloyds Bank building (another few hundred jobs gone there) got turned into a hundred or so flats. All these people have to work somewhere but there's fewer places in Worthing for them to work. Add that to the 700 odd new houses at Durrington and it's no surprise that all roads out of Worthing are packed in the morning. And all the time the infrastructure is the same as it was in the 1980s

 

[Pretty pink fairy]

Ooooh. I know this one. It's erm, cyclists isn't it?

din alert !!!
regards
DR

 

[Dick Swiveller]

din alert !!!
regards
DR

Praise from Caesar.

 

[Whosh51]

In the 50's this was supposed to be the Folkestone to Honiton trunk road linking east to west coast.
Still needs to be built Sussex has the worst road network in the U.K.
Still saving a newt is better than choking us to death in an endless traffic jam.