Hundreds call for major St Leonards road to be repaired

St Leonards residents have called on the council to repair a major road in the town, which they described as being in a ‘disgusting state’.
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Andy White said the top of Battle Road, St Leonards, is crumbling while sections of the broken road surface are blocking drains, causing water to run down the road when it rains heavily.

“This is a very busy a road,” said Andy. “I have witnessed lots of near misses where cars a braking hard to avoid holes or swerving around them onto the other lane.

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“There is next to no road surface left and no road markings remain. Bikes and motorbikes are in real danger as well as damage to cars. The top of the road is in a disgusting state.”

Battle Road, St LeonardsBattle Road, St Leonards
Battle Road, St Leonards

Andy said he has reported the road surface to East Sussex Highways who told him a steward is monitoring the road condition and making repairs as required.

He was told the warden visits every six weeks and makes repairs within 28 days of the visit.

“It’s not good enough,” Andy added. “That could be two and half months between each repair.”

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“This road needs the drains unblocking and relaying now before a major accident occurs and someone is seriously hurt.

Battle Road, St LeonardsBattle Road, St Leonards
Battle Road, St Leonards

“I walk along this road daily and it’s not safe. My wife also drives up here daily and she has almost had people drive into her where she has slowed down to avoid holes.”

East Sussex Highways said the road will be resurfaced in the summer and could not be completed sooner due to limited resources.

A spokesman said: “We are aware of the condition of this part of Battle Road and we have this section in our programme for resurfacing in the summer, which will improve the road surface and extend its life.

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“We only have very limited resources so unfortunately we’re not able to do the work any sooner but will continue to monitor the condition of the road and will carry out any emergency repairs that meet our criteria.”

Battle Road, St LeonardsBattle Road, St Leonards
Battle Road, St Leonards

Andy, frustrated by the wait, said he has been asking the county council to repair the road for months.

On Monday (March 9) he posted on Facebook asking other residents and road users to comment if they supported getting Battle Road fixed.

By 2pm on Tuesday (March 10), the post had received 230 comments supporting the idea.

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