Norman Baker MP Member of Parliament for Lewes constituency
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Norman Baker,
23 East Street,
Lewes,
East Sussex,
BN7 2LJ.
Tel: (01273) 480281.
Fax: (01273) 480287.
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MP gives "two cheers" for A259 safety scheme
Seaford’s MP Norman Baker has welcomed a pledge by East Sussex County Council to improve safety at a notorious junction in the town, but says that the scheme chosen, whilst tackling safety, will have other unwelcome drawbacks.
Norman has long campaigned for safety improvements at the site, the junction of Hill Rise with the A259. Now the County is proposing to widen the main road here to allow vehicles turning right out of Hill Rise to wait in a safe area in the middle of the road before completing the turn. They will also be constructing a solid barrier to prevent right turns off the A259 into Hill Rise, a manoeuvre responsible for a number of the accidents to date. New warning signs will also be installed including one giving advanced indication of the right-turn ban.
However they have ruled out the possibility of a roundabout claiming insufficient funds at the present time, even using funds from the planned development at the old Abbot’s Lodge Motel. They have also rules out the idea of a coupling of mini-roundabouts, one at the Hill Rise turn, and a linked one at the junction nearly opposite, leading into Hawth Hill.
Commenting on this Norman says:
“Two cheers for the decision by the East Sussex County Council to widen the A259 at Hill Rise to provide a central refuge. This will significantly help to improve the safety at this junction. However the new measures do mean that cars travelling from Seaford, wanting to turn right into Hill Rise will either face a very long diversion to Denton Corner, or be forced to make a somewhat complicated reverse manoeuvre using one of the side roads nearby, which could bring its own safety problems.
“I am disappointed that the Council has not, it seems, looked into the possibility of a double mini-roundabout arrangement similar to one recently and successfully introduced at the A272/A275 junctions in North Chailey. This would have improved safety without stopping particular turns. It would also have slowed traffic down, particularly if a lower speed limit had been introduced in the vicinity of these roundabouts, as I would recommend. It would also be a relatively cheap option, and certainly cheaper than a full roundabout, which would probably cost up to a million pounds, I understand.
“I have asked council officials to think again about the mini-roundabout option.”