Eastbourne MP 'appalled' by Reform-led county council’s timing of bus lane works
Josh Babarinde has called a bus lane-works timetable ‘nonsensical’ and is urging the county council to change it.
In a letter to East Sussex County Council Leader, Councillor Andy Woolley, Eastbourne MP Josh Babarinde has raised serious concerns about what he describes as the “nonsensical timetable” for the Station Parade bus lane works and called on them to “urgently reconsider”.
The major works are scheduled to begin on or after November 9 2026 and could continue until December 18 2026, disrupting both the footways and carriageway.
The Lib Dem MP has questioned the decision to schedule these works during one of the busiest trading periods of the year for local businesses.
On September 2, local organisations wrote to Councillor Woolley requesting a meeting with him and his senior officers to discuss the proposed Station Parade bus lane. They requested a response within 14 days, given the timescales involved.
However, almost nine weeks later, they have still not received a response. Only to subsequently discover, through a third-party website, that the timetable for the works.
In a statement, Mr Babarinde said: “While I welcome investment in Eastbourne’s public transport infrastructure and recognise the need to tackle congestion, I share the serious concerns raised by residents and local businesses about these proposals.
"Reform-led East Sussex County Council are letting down Eastbourne’s small businesses. For months, they have been dragging their heels while the scheme has supposedly been under review, only for them to finally decide to press ahead with major works during one of the most important trading periods of the year.
“I want to see Councillor Woolley agree to an urgent meeting with local businesses and stakeholders so that these concerns can be properly heard and the proposed timetable reconsidered.”
The Lib Dem MP has been working closely with local businesses like That Coffee Place and the Directors of the Enterprise Centre. In a statement, the Enterprise's Commercial Director Denise Harwood said: “We have strongly opposed the planned works to remove a vital lane of traffic in Station Parade in order to replace it with a bus lane, which we believe will cause unnecessary disruption and congestion.
“We are, of course, pro-buses, but even they will be held up in the queues! We now learn that this work has been scheduled for the two busiest trading weeks in December, thus affecting all of our hard-working businesses at our shopping centre and indeed, the whole Town.
“Any disruption during this period will have a devastating impact on the viability of many of the businesses that rely on Christmas trading to survive. The town centre is already feeling the ramifications of the traffic lights being reprogrammed; outside the Station, there is now significant congestion in Station Parade. We implore ESCC Highways to reconsider.”
We have approached East Sussex County Council for comment.