NEWS RELEASES
District Council Supports A24 Improvements
26th July 2001
Horsham District Council is strongly supporting the need for safety improvements to the A24 as long as:
- the preferred scheme of West Sussex and Surrey County Councils is justified by environmental and safety assessments;
- the improvements are designed to accommodate existing traffic flows and to avoid generating extra traffic;
- the proposal includes improving the southern section of the A24 from Horsham to Washington;
- there is widespread public consultation.
West Sussex and Surrey County Councils have consulted the District Council on a proposal for improvements to the Horsham to Capel section of the A24. The scheme, which will be the subject of a bid for Government funding, involves major improvements either to the current line of the road or on a new route between the existing road and the railway line to the east. Safety assessments being undertaken by the County Councils appear to favour a single carriageway road on a new route.
The proposal was considered at a meeting of the District Council on Wednesday, 25th July 2001, when Councillors also discussed:
i) the accident record of the southern section of the A24 from Horsham to Washington. In recent years, there have been more fatal and serious accidents on this section
than on the section north of Horsham. The southern section acts as a link between the A23 and the coast (via the A264) as well as carrying traffic to and from the northern section of the A24;
ii) the possible implications of A24 improvements for future development in the northern part of the Horsham District. West Sussex County Council has confirmed that any large housing development in that area would require road capacity beyond a single carriageway scheme for the northern section of the A24. It has also confirmed that consideration of the Structure Plan (a draft of which is expected to be published this autumn) will be entirely separate from the proposals for the A24, which are based on highway safety requirements;
iii) the need for widespread public consultation on the proposed improvements.
After the Council meeting, Cllr David Jenkins, the District Council’s Cabinet Member for Strategic Planning & Transport, said:
"The Council has long argued that, in view of its bad accident record, the A24 from Horsham to Capel needs to be improved and I am determined that decisions made on the County Councils’ proposals must focus on the paramount need to improve road safety. I believe that the latest traffic accident figures also show the need to act urgently on the problems experienced in the southern section of the A24.
"Horsham District Council will be seeking urgent commitment from West Sussex County Council to ensure that the proposed highway improvements focus on the existing traffic flows and have nothing to do with the forthcoming County Council Structure Plan."
Cllr Liz Kitchen, Leader of Horsham District Council, said:
"Given the timing of these proposals, the Council is obviously concerned that improvements to the A24 should not be used in the draft Structure Plan as justification for allocating large amounts of development to the Horsham District. However, Government funding will mean that the improvements that the County Councils are now proposing should not need developer contributions. The clear statement from West Sussex County Council that the final scheme will be designed to meet only existing traffic needs is to be welcomed.
"The District Council recognises that there is a deadline for submitting the scheme to Government. However, the Council is concerned that the public have not been asked for their views on the proposals and, within the time constraints, Horsham District Council will be urging the County Council to undertake wide public consultation."
CONTACT: Martin Pearson (01403 215102) or Tony Stevens (01403 215150)