Rye area to faceweeks of chaosas A259 closes

The work, which is necessary for drainage repairs and resurfacing, will see the A259 closed completely between Guestling and Winchelsea for two entire weekends.

Work was due to get underway this week with a 24 hour lane closure and traffic lights outside Guestling Bradshaw School, while the school is on half-term break.

In order to carry out deeper drainage work the A259 will be closed in two directions from 8pm on Friday February 28 to 6am on Monday March 3 and at the same times from Friday March 7 - Monday March 10.

Access to Buckswood School will be maintained at all times.

There will also be overnight closures on the A259 between Monday March 3 and Friday 7 while resurfacing work is carried out between Butchers Lane and Broad Street.

Work is scheduled to be completed by the end of March, but this will be dependent on the weather.

There will be traffic management of some kind on the A259 for 24 hours a day during the duration of the scheme.

During the closures most local traffic will be diverted through Fairlight, Pett Level and Winchelsea Beach to pick up the A259 again at Winchelsea.

Those wishing to go northbound of the A259 will be diverted on the A28 out to Northiam and then down the A268 through Peasmarsh to re-join Rye. This will be an additional ten miles.

The work is being carried out by Highways Agency contractor Balfour Beatty Mott MacDonald, who say it will prolong the life of the road, improve safety and reduce the need for emergency repairs or flooding in the future.

A spokesperson for the contractors said: “Work of this nature does generate disruption and, inevitably, a certain amount of noise.

Efforts will be made to reduce this wherever possible. We appreciate people’s understanding and tolerance of the work.”