East Sussex bus services branded 'atrocious' by residents as proposals for improvements unveiled
Proposals to help make bus services more reliable, improve journey times and reduce congestion across East Sussex have been unveiled following numerous complaints from locals.
East Sussex County Council is asking the public to give their views on the plans which include new bus lanes, bus stops and shelters, upgrades to junctions and signals to give priority to buses, and new and upgraded pedestrian routes and crossings in Eastbourne, Newhaven and Peacehaven.
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Hide AdResidents have expressed on social media their anger at the current bus timetables, criticising the irregularity and limited number of services in the Lewes District, with one resident writing: "I am so surprised (and disappointed) that my bus travel is now severely limited and even a 9.00am concessionary bus fare has been removed.
"To remove the arguably most important 9.00am bus service from Kingston to Lewes (and Kingston to Newhaven) is just a big blow to regular ex users. The next bus time is over an hour later and makes onward journeys to connect other buses, etc., to Lewes, Newhaven, Seaford, Eastbourne and from Lewes to Brighton. To add to all these unfair changes, our 9.00am concessionary bus pass arrangement for the 9.00am bus has not been transferred to the earlier bus.”
Another commented: “I also think it is outrageous that the 127 and 128 buses stop so early in the evening. If you travel to London and don't want /cannot afford to pay a significantly higher fare for travelling in the rush hour, there are no buses up to Landport when you arrive back at Lewes station”
A third wrote: “I think the bus service from Kingston to Lewes is atrocious! No chance of us giving up our cars now?”
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Hide AdThe proposals are part of the council’s Bus Service Improvement plan aimed at ensuring residents and visitors can enjoy the highest possible quality bus services, after they received £41.4m from the government to make these changes.
A range of measures are planned in four areas in Eastbourne – King’s Drive, Upperton, Seaside Corridor and Seaside Roundabout, Eastbourne Station Area, and Sovereign Harbour – whilst three more are being organised in Newhaven and Peacehaven.
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These include Newhaven Town Centre Ring Road, Drove Road, Newhaven Town Area and Denton Roundabout, and Peacehaven A259 Corridor.
Cllr Claire Dowling, lead member for transport and environment, said: “We believe that by making these improvements across Eastbourne, Peacehaven and Newhaven, we can help to provide a more reliable service for residents and visitors, encourage greater use of public transport, and tackle congestion in these areas.
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Hide Ad“It’s important that we work with local communities to ensure that any measures we put in place are successful and have the most positive effect on these areas as possible. To achieve this, we need to hear from residents and businesses and their feedback will help shape our final designs.”
The public consultation, which started on July 31, runs until Monday, September 25. Residents can have their say on the East Sussex County Council website