Improvements to junction near Chichester pushed back another year

Work to improve safety and reduce congestion at the junction of Birdham Road and Selsey Road has been in the pipeline since 2019 but looks set to be moved back to 2024/25.

The project is included in Chichester District Council’s draft Infrastructure Business Plan 2023-28, which is to be put out to consultation later this month.

The plan details infrastructure projects identified by the district and county council and others and whether they need funding from the Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL) or other sources.

During a meeting of the cabinet on Tuesday (September 6), members considered a report which highlighted some of the changes to projects in the plan.

The CIL request for the roundabout project has sky-rocketed since 2019, standing at £440,000 compared to the original £111,000.

Officers explained this was all tied up with work undertaken for the local plan on the A27 as the county council did not want to spend money on new junction improvements if they need to be amended again or might not be needed at all.

Further discussions would need to take place with WSCC to establish a way forward as ‘for the time being the project’s on hold’.

While that project was delayed, a new one was added to the list for consideration for inclusion in the CIL spending plan.

West Sussex Clinical Commissioning Group – which is now part of the NHS Sussex Integrated Care Board – put in a request for £700,000 as part of a project to provide additional primary care capacity for 2022/2023.

The project would be based in district council-owned property at Willow Park, in Terminus Road, which the GP Federation is looking to lease.

A report to the cabinet said the cost of fitting out the facility would be around £1.4m.

Officers advised councillors that it would not be a conventional GP surgery and would be mainly used to support the area’s GPs with work such as appointments.

Cabinet members agreed that the draft Infrastructure Business Plan should be put out to consultation with city, town and parish councils and neighbouring local authorities including the South Downs National Park Authority.