SGN A24 Gas Works Update

I met with Jim the I & G contractor this afternoon.

Standing at the Mayfield lights made me realise how many drivers are apparently red/green colour blind! Some incredibly dangerous manoeuvres going on and traffic turning out of both sides of Greatham Road, both north and south!

The good news is that the Mayfield works are complete and the whole compound will move to inside Hillview Rise this evening to give a traffic light-free weekend. I have warned Jim how narrow the road is and the amount of parked vehicles in the evenings/weekends.

Work will begin at the Hillview Rise junction with the A24 on Monday from 6am. A temporary pedestrian crossing will be sited, with the existing one turned off for the duration. I reiterated our concerns over the Vale one-way system using Hillview and the fact that the school is open until end of Wednesday. This work will take approximately 3-4 days, if it goes as smoothly as the Mayfield site, and the plan is to then move the whole compound up to Marshall Avenue with next weekend also being traffic light-free.

The Marshall Avenue works are scheduled for 3 weeks, as both sides of the carriageway are involved.

Throughout, bus stops are being impacted. The bus company no longer puts markers on the bus stops to indicate that they are suspended, I have asked our West Sussex County Councillor, Elizabeth Sparkes to contact them and find out if they can please do this!

The 'Keep Junction Clear' signs have largely worked well. Regarding the rat running along Maytree/Central/Limetree, Paul, our Highways Officer, made a rough count last evening suggesting 300+ vehicle movements, often at speed, along Maytree in just 40 minutes. Jim made a call to the project manager at SGN whilst he was with me to request 'Access Only' signage, as previously discussed, and these will be put in place when the Team return on Monday. PLEASE if you are one of the many drivers who do this, consider the impact on our residential roads and the safety of everyone in our community.

I thanked Jim for his time today and complimented the youngsters who have been controlling the traffic lights this week, most drivers have been courteous but some have not. Considering they are agency staff and their tender years, the task they were set was onerous.

We will meet again next week for a further update.

Please let me know of any issues.

Have a good weekend.

Lorraine