Major changes to road outside Bexhill Town Hall could see one-way system removed

On Monday (January 16), Cllr Claire Dowling, East Sussex County Council’s lead member for transport and environment, is set to decide on plans to rework the road layout in Town Hall Square.

If approved, the council would remove an existing gyratory system and replace it with a small pedestrianised area. This would be achieved through the creation of a new T-junction connecting London Road and Buckhurst Road.

Officers, who are recommending the project be approved, say the scheme would result in a “less car dominated environment”, which they say would be hoped to encourage visitors to the town centre.

Two options were presented during a consultation in 2021. Officers said: “Whilst the removal of the gyratory received a mixed response during the public consultation, it will deliver an attractive public realm that will provide a safe space for people to meet, encouraging people to come into the town more often and spend more time there.”

According to council papers, the proposals to rework the road system have been developed in parallel with Rother District Council’s plans to redevelop the wider Bexhill Town Hall site, which includes the construction of a new civic centre.

The core proposals of this redevelopment — known as the Town Hall Renaissance Project — had been before the district council’s planning committee in October, but were narrowly-refused as a result of design concerns.

In papers set to go before Cllr Dowling, county council officers say the district council is expected to submit a new application “in due course”, but, speaking last month, RDC leader Doug Oliver said the plans had “stalled” as a result of financial uncertainty.

RDC had previously said its proposed scheme was expected to cost around £15m, which it would have had to fund through borrowing. It was said to be self-financing, however, as a result of both savings from energy bills and new income from renting out office space.

Either way, county council officers say the road proposals are designed to work whether or not the wider Town Hall site is redeveloped.