Permanent cycle lanes for main Shoreham route 'not ruled out'

At a Joint Overview and Scrutiny Committee meeting on Thursday (July 14), Shoreham-By-Cycle’s Clive Andrews asked council leader Neil Parkin (Con, Hillside) if he would lobby West Sussex County Council for a permanent cycle lane in Upper Shoreham Road.

“West Sussex County Council is failing to deliver the primary strategic routes so vital to the network as identified in Adur and Worthing Councils’ local cycling and walking infrastructure plan,” said Mr Andrews.

“This strategic document was developed through extensive consultation and expert input before being unanimously accepted in 2020 and strongly endorsed by you, councillor Parkin.”

Mr Andrews claimed that the lack of a permanent route along the Upper Shoreham Road is ‘standing in the way of sustainable travel’ in Adur following the removal of a pop up lane in 2020.

In response, Mr Parkin said the Upper Shoreham Road route had not been ruled out and added that his cabinet colleagues Angus Dunn and Kevin Boram, who are also county councillors, were ‘on it somewhat ferociously’.

“I’m certainly not going to complain about West Sussex [County Council] and what they’re doing with their cycle routes,” Mr Parkin said.

“The only unfortunate thing is when they did the hurried roll out of the route along the Upper Shoreham Road and it rather muddied the waters.

“I know you’re very keen for it to happen but there’s lots of residents who live along there that aren’t, so it’s a bit of a tricky situation.

“Trust that [Mr Dunn and Mr Boram] are working on it with the cabinet member for West Sussex.”

Mr Andrews was reassured that the cycle route ‘hadn’t been rejected or ruled out’.

Campaigners have been pushing for a permanent cycle lane since the pandemic pop up was removed by West Sussex County Council in 2020.

A court ruled that WSCC had removed it unlawfully and ordered it to pay £25,000 in costs to Cycling UK, which brought the legal challenge.

A full interview with Mr Andrews will be published on our website later this week.