Eastbourne: Petition to implement changes at 'traffic incident hot spot'

After witnessing a collision in Lottbridge Drove, Will Gartside started a petition ‘due to the safety hazard this road setup presents’.

The petition calls on East Sussex County Council to implement a no-right-turn rule on the approach to the retail park in Lottbridge Drove.

Mr Gartside said: “This area around Lottbridge Drove Retail Park has become a hot spot for traffic incidents over the past few years, and it's incredibly important to take action.

"The need for a no-right-turn rule is not about easing traffic flow, it's about preserving lives and preventing further serious accidents.

"According to local reports, there have been numerous crashes in this area in recent years.”

Mr Gartside said allowing right turns into the retail park is ‘proving to be dangerous due to the road splitting into two lanes on the approach to the junction’.

"This set up often prompts road users who are turning right into the retail park to commit, thinking traffic is slowing, and fail to anticipate oncoming vehicles that are splitting into the inside lane,” he said.

"Furthermore, this also prompts traffic turning left at the roundabout to make progress while right lane traffic slows to queue, creating heightened risk of collisions and near misses.”

Mr Gartside said he believed implementing a no-right-turn rule will ‘mitigate the risk of collisions’ and ‘make the roads safer for everyone using them’.

He added: “We need to act now, and prevent any more life-changing injuries from occurring at this location.”

An East Sussex County Council spokesperson said: “We are aware of residents’ concerns about this section of Lottbridge Drove, and will consider the petition when it is received.

“We do not currently have details of the crash from Sussex Police, who are investigating the incident, and without details of the circumstances around the crash, it would be inappropriate for us to comment further at this stage.”

The petition can be found here: www.change.org/p/implement-a-no-right-turn-rule-on-the-approach-to-the-lottbridge-drove-retail-park.