Political opinion with John Milne MP: Too many dangerous road crossings in Horsham District
The time has come for action on safety concerns on the A264 at the Faygate roundabout. Residents are taking their lives into their own hands if they try to cross this busy road, which cars treat as if it were a motorway. Anyone wanting to catch a bus or walk between Colgate and Faygate faces this challenge, and it’s getting worse year on year as the population grows. Cllr Sam Raby on Horsham District Council is leading the campaign for action.
Unfortunately, this is far from the only location where the road designers failed to understand changing local needs. Crossing the A24 between Southwater and Horsham at Hop Oast is another notorious hazard. It’s one of the obstacles to creating a genuinely usable walking and cycling route between the two largest settlements in the district. They’re not far apart, but most people feel obliged to use vehicular transport.
From my county councillor days, when I represented Horsham Riverside, I’m also familiar with concerns about the crossing between Highwood and Broadbridge Heath. In rush hour, this is difficult for traffic seeking to exit Highwood because the cars come up the slip road from the A24 so swiftly. But it’s difficult all day long for pedestrians. The sightlines are poor, and if you’re at all infirm or with children, it’s not a pleasant experience. Cllr Louise Potter has now taken up this issue.
What frustrates me is the lack of consideration for pedestrians in the original design. The focus was entirely on the traffic. It’s as if the designers saw these roads as mini motorways. As a result, our major roads now slice the district into pieces and disconnect places that are actually in easy walking distance of each other.
The key decisions regarding Highways lie with West Sussex County Council, and in my view, they have never given sufficient consideration to pedestrians and cyclists. Some of these road designs were built very recently, and it’s disappointing to see they need major revision so soon.
For this reason, when I was a councillor, I campaigned for a ringfenced proportion of the roads budget to be reserved for improving the walking and cycling network. In too many places, even where there is a stretch of dedicated cycle lane, it disappears when it really matters, such as at a junction.
We wouldn’t build a motorway with random gaps in between – so why do we do that with cycle lanes? WSCC must take a strategic approach and concentrate resources on creating complete, safe routes that achieve the way from A to B.