New demand made as councillor acts

Cllr Phillips (UKIP, Middleton) said she was constantly seeking improvements to the site where Yapton Road and the A259 meet.

It was the scene in August of a fatal accident which claimed the life of Bognor Regis man Robert Giacopazzi.

His cousin, Tony Giacopazzi, has an ongoing petition to call on the county council to at least ban right- hand turns there. He also wants to see more shrub clearance work around the junction.

He said a nearby roadsign could barely be seen and needed the same treatment as the 40mph sign which had been cleared recently.

“Something has to be done to that area. It is so overgrown,” he said.

Cllr Phillips said she was sure changes could be made to the junction but she stressed she was unable to discuss the collision.

“I’m pressing all the time when I have a meeting or talk to officers at County Hall about the need to improve that junction.

“One of the things about it is that you slow down to 40mph and then the road bends round and so you have got drivers who are unaware of what is happening.

“If you want to go the Oystercatcher pub, there’s a sharp corner which means you have to slow down to about 20mph.

“There should be a slip road there instead, or motorists have to be told to slow down to a lot lower than 40mph.

“Anyone who wants to go down to Climping also finds headlights shining straight at them. You can’t always see what’s going on.”

Cllr Phillips said improvements were soon due to take place at the A259’s Comet Corner junction on the outskirts of Middleton and Yapton. These would involve widening a section of the A259 to make the need for work at the Yapton Road junction even more important.

Cllr Pieter Montyn, the head of the county council’s highways section, has said in a statement his officers would always listen to ideas. But changes must not alter conditions elsewhere.