Lewes Forum thread

I received this in an email over the weekend; an earlier post was asking about this road closure and the arrangements..
PR 2705
09 February 2010
For Immediate Release
Lewes High Street to be made one-way to allow work on BT manhole
BT Openreach is proposing to carry out essential maintenance work to an underground chamber beneath the busiest section of the High Street in Lewes from 14 February to 4 March. To allow this work to go ahead, a section of the High Street will be made one-way from the bottle neck to the junction of Fisher Street and Station Street.. Works will be carried out from Monday to Friday between 8am and 8pm, and Saturday & Sunday between 9am and 5pm.
The underground brick built chamber was constructed just after the Second World War and is no longer suitable for today's traffic. BT has already reinforced it and has identified the need for it to be replaced with a much stronger steel chamber.
The work will be delicate as the chamber contains live telephone and optic fibre cables serving businesses throughout Lewes and will involve re-building the chamber in the same location opposite the High Street Post Office. Due to the phased construction process and time needed for concrete to set, there will times when there are no personnel apparent on site. Because of the nature of the work and to maintain the safety of the workforce, motorists and pedestrians, the area around the chamber will be fenced off for the duration of the works.
To allow these works to be carried out safely, a section of the High Street, Lewes, will be made one-way allowing traffic to use the High Street in an easterly direction only. West-bound traffic will be diverted via Southover Street. There will be a temporary ban on left hand turns from Station Street, St Nicholas Lane, St Martin's Lane and St Swithuns Lane onto the High Street and a temporary road closure of Watergate Lane.
There will also be a temporary prohibition of parking in sections of the High Street, Southover Road and Southover High Street. The suspension of parking has been kept to minimum but, as Southover Road will be used as a bus route, these changes are necessary so that buses can pass.
A County Council spokesman said, "We have taken great care to co-ordinate the works of utilities on the highway and have been working closely with BT Openreach for a number of months to make sure disruption is kept to a minimum. We will be suspending any other works that will have an impact on traffic flow, such as those requiring temporary traffic lights."
"We have also been liaising with bus companies, the Lewes Chamber of Commerce and other interested parties to alert them of the work and put up advanced warning signs to alert motorists. We are grateful for people's patience while these emergency works are being carried out."
A spokesperson for BT said, "This essential work must be done to protect BT's network which supplies services to businesses and residents in the area. We are working closely with East Sussex County Council to minimise disruption for the town and assure those who will be affected by this carefully planned work that we will work as quickly as possible. We don't envisage any breaks in telecoms services whilst this work is being undertaken."



Notes for editors
Traffic Management
No vehicle shall be permitted to travel westbound on the A277 High Street from its junction with the B2193 Station Street to its junction with the U5115 Westgate Street. A distance of 315 metres.
The alternative route will be via the B2193 Friars Walk, the B2193 Lansdown Place, U5122 Southover Road, the U5162 Southover High Street, the B2193 Southover High Street, the C7 Bell Lane, the C7 Winterbourne Hollow and the A277 Western Road.
For the duration of the work it will be necessary for the U5122 Watergate Lane to be closed at its junction with the A277 High Street for 3 metres in a southerly direction (due to the close proximity of the works to the junction).
The alternative route will be via the U5122 St Andrews Lane and the U5122 Southover Road.
To ensure traffic flows freely it is necessary to prohibit parking at any time for the duration of the diversion at various locations along with the suspension of a number of designated parking locations.
Public Transport arrangements
Buses heading eastwards into Lewes should be mostly unaffected by the closure. However buses travelling west out of Lewes will follow the alternative route and resume their normal line of route at Lewes Prison crossroads. In the westbound direction, this will mean that the bus stops on School Hill, High Street and Western Road will be out of use.
Any customers who normally travel from Lewes Bus Station to the High Street can catch service 127 from Friars Walk and alight at Fisher Street
The occasional journeys on service 123 which normally serve Western Road will not do so and will follow the normal line of route along Southover High Street, with the exception of the 0855 departure from Lewes Bus Station, which will follow the designated diversion route in order to serve the St Nicholas Centre in Spital Road.
Whilst bus operators will make every effort to run as close as possible to their published timetables, customers are advised that journeys are likely to be subject to delay and extended journey times.
Parking Arrangements
To ensure traffic flows freely it is necessary to prohibit parking at any time for the duration of the diversion at various locations, along with the suspension of a number of designated parking locations. All kerb side parking space in central Lewes is already designated for parking wherever it is safe to do so, which means that no additional spaces can be made available. However, some alternative overnight parking can be found at County Hall to the west, Brook Street and the Aldi Car Parks to the east and Cockshut Road and Mountfield Road Car Parks to the south. These spaces are NOT available to residents for daytime use, however, but may be helpful to those who commute out of Lewes during the working day. Further information is available from the Parking Shop, 29 High Street, Lewes, or telephone 01273 477105.





For further information please contact:
James Holland
Tel: 01273 482053
Out of hours: 07974 427569
Email: james.holland@eastsussex.gov.uk

> We don't envisage any breaks in telecoms services whilst this work is being undertaken
Ha ha ha ha ha. That'd be a first then.

Now why couldn't they have just put up a dozen or so signs up with all that information on eh, Local Resident, that would have far better!!!!!!!!!!!!

I fully expected to be stuck in a great long queue all the way up Bell Lane and the Hollow tonight, but there seemed to be considerably less traffic than usual. Judging by the queue coming down Nevill Road, everyone is ignoring the official diversion and going up The Avenue/De Montfort or Prince Edward's Road instead.

More news on parking arrangements while this is on
"Lewes High Street works, alternative parking for residents

Owing to the extensive diversions necessitated by the works being carried out by BT in Lewes High Street some alternative parking arrangements have been made for resident permit holders of sub-zone D in Lewes. Lewes District Council has kindly agreed that:

D zone permit holders may use Brook Street/Spring Gardens Car Park (off Norths Street, near the fire station) and the Aldi Car Park (off Brooks Road, near Tesco) for the duration of the High Street works until the diversions are lifted.

D zone permit holders should display their resident permit when parking in these car parks as usage will be logged by patrolling officers, and they may be liable to receive a penalty if the permit is not displayed.

Signs to this effect are being erected in Southover Road and the High Street, the areas where parking suspensions have had to be imposed. However, in consideration of the inevitable displacement which will occur, this concession applies to all D zone permit holders for the duration of the diversions."

The reason there is not traffic chaos at the moment is because the kids are on school holidays......wait till next week....poo will hit the fan...

Well that'll just serve people right for driving their kids to school. There's no school in Lewes you couldn't walk to from anywhere else in Lewes, the walk to Mountfield Road from up Wallands way never did me any harm.

How brilliant not to see gridlock as a result of BT works! but have to agree with Ed Can Do. Thank you ere be monsters and others for making me laugh with your responses to earlier posting. No, larger or more road signs not recommended just thought East and West a little vaugue...

Ed, I often drive my nipper and his little brother from Cliffe to St Pancras. Tis a bit of a schlep.

I agree ECD - walking is brilliant for the kids, good for health and good for parents and a great way to have a good chat with them at the same time. Cliffe to St Pancras can be no more than 20 minute walk, maybe 30 mins with a toddler. Try it Pepe - it's far less stressful and you might just have fun !

Ruth, could you ask ESCC to explain why they are discriminating against Zone B residents, who have also had major disruptions in their Zone, but are not allowed to use these same car parks? i am particularly baffled, because, unlike Zone D, ESCC are on record as admitting that Zone B has the worse shortfall of spaces, doesn't function properly, and is getting worse.
It seems to me that ESCC have no consistent policies, and simply haven't a clue what they are doing.

Only further news so far is about zone E with an arrangement for residents to use the Cockshut Road car park while there is a loss of resident parking spaces in Southover High Street.

Nothing about Zone B as yet but I have asked the question as to whether concessions are to be granted...

Thanks Ruth, though my real question is for you to ask why Zone B residents haven't been offered the same provision when extensive work is going on, which has resulted in a much higher percentage of lost spaces. (whole streets at a time have been lost in Lancaster St Area, Pells etc, with no alternative provision) Why the discrimination?

I would also like to have an answer to enquiry's question, because in Zone B we have been suffering parking misery for months whilst up to 20 spaces at a time, in solid blocks have disappeared for weeks on end. Why the inconsistency? As is said we have the worst parking/permit ratio already.

I noticed today that a load of spaces have been fenced off in Lansdown Place. There was a workman there but I think he was just in charge of polishing the cones. Anyone know what's going on there now?