No consideration taken by West Sussex County Council of inconvenience caused by roadworks

The following is a letter I have sent to Nick Herbert MP.

I am writing to you as our MP though the issue is just outside your constituency. It will however affect constituents in Goddards Green, Hurstpierpoint and around, as well as Burgess Hill, in Nick Soames’ Mid-Sussex constituency, and you may want to pass this on to him.

As you know there is the development going on of an industrial estate on the SE corner of the roundabout of the A2300/Cuckfield-Road junction, as part of the Burgess Hill Northern Arc development. I have just been speaking with a Ms Gledhill at West Sussex CC who responded to me after I phoned the offices last Thursday.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

The lesser problem is the set of 2-way lights between the Sportsman and the A2300, which is justified because of the narrowness of that road while the works are going on, and this causes only minor delays because the traffic is generally light.

More serious is the situation on the A2300 itself, which is after all the only decent road into Burgess Hill (population 30,000+) from the main A23 axis. Last Thursday there were 4-way lights at that roundabout, and I came through west towards Goddards Green from B Hill at 2.30pm and the jam even then was back to the Triangle. I’m sure it was far worse during the rush hour, or at the 3.30-4pm school run time. When I spoke with two men at WSCC then they said that they had no control of where the developers put their lights (!!) This seemed very odd, and in fact was wrong, and the 4-way lights have been abandoned at that roundabout.....for now!...,

Apparently, the 4-way lights will be reimposed between 7 January and 11 February (5 weeks), and WSCC say they have no control over that. They accept there will be chaos. Burgess Hill will be cut off from its main supply route. I would imagine the tailbacks will stretch into Burgess Hill and onto the A23 at Hickstead. Apparently when a plan is passed by a council, they can look at the final outcome, and do not consider any inconvenience (or worse) during the construction. This seems ridiculous, but apparently that is the way it is.

This is of course only the start of the Burgess Hill Northern Arc development. I have no objection in principle to this development, or even the spread of industrial units along the A2300 towards the A23, but the impact of the works on a major access road into a large town has to be considered.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

Any input you or Nick Soames could put into mitigating this impending doom-scenario would be much appreciated.

Regards (and this won’t all be over by Christmas!)

Dr Bill Rawlinson

High Hatch Lane,

Hurstpierpoint