On 16 Apr 2013 at 11:47pm Lopster wrote:
so, it takes 6 weeks to totally screw the traffic outside the pub - disable the crossing and cause no end of near accidents - all to move the zebra (at least it IS a zebra not a puffin-flamingo replacement) about 6 foot...
OH yes AND hobble the junction in the process so that turning right past the Ellie when leaving town will become nigh on impossible...
but they DID warn us
what they didn't warn us about was CHANGING THE FLOW IN COMMERCIAL SQUARE AGAIN!!!! - they just decided to do that with no warning WHY??? it was a disaster last time
come on council - stick to what you do best - NOTHING!!!! if it ain't broke - LEAVE IT ALONE - t0ssers
On 17 Apr 2013 at 12:17am Local wrote:
I'm no council-apologist, but don't be a knob! Check your facts - there was formal consultation about the Commercial Square changes too.
On 17 Apr 2013 at 1:23am Local 1 wrote:
Sorry Lopster but as Local said, there was a consultation in the autumn which clearly highlighted the changes at Commercial Square for a trial period of 18 months. It's a joint ESCC/LDC project as part of LDC's aim to improve air quality, particularly the Station St, Fisher street corridor.
Take a look at the link to find out more info
Check it out here »
On 17 Apr 2013 at 5:06am lopster wrote:
love to know how it was published - I certainly never saw it
it is EXACTLY the same as an exercise carried out about three years ago then - Can someone remember why it was changed back that time (I am SURE all will become apparent...)?
WHY do it at the same time as the extended Eliie crossing works (how much is it costing to move a Zebra 6 feet?) drivers have just cleared that chaos and all of a sudden double white lines - lethal
AND WHY NO WARNING THAT THE LAYOUT HAS CHANGED - the give way lines are invisible to approaching drivers
On 17 Apr 2013 at 7:34am huw wrote:
During the consultation phase for the works outside the pub I was told that the works giving priority to Fisher street would not be done at the same time as the moving of the crossing.
The reasoning behind not doing the works were money and that they would not want to change the layout for traffic at two points so close to each other at the same time.
As to how much it's costing to move the crossing, official figures on the website came in at £66,000, but as work has overrun it may be costing more
On 17 Apr 2013 at 8:16am Sussex Jim wrote:
It's a zebra crossing, means all traffic has to stop when someone crosses, so why do we need the island refuge? Before, there was a chance to swerve to the centre if someone suddenly poked their (car) nose out of Abinger Place too far. Now I will "rat run" up Sun Street rather than exit from AP,should I be travelling that way.
Another problem with the changed priority is that vehicles queueing uphill by the Elly will be constantly revving their engines to move forward, producing far more fumes than the previous queues in Fisher Street, where the downhill slope meant engines could be left merely idling while cars trickled down to the junction.
Finally, because of the priority of the mini roundabout at the bottom of The Avenue, traffic backing up along the Offham road will be cutting through Park Road and King Henry's Road past the school.
On 17 Apr 2013 at 9:29am grafter wrote:
Yes Jim, unintended consequences again. I find it awkward going onto the mini-roundabout from the Avenue as bad visibility means you have to go forward to see cars coming down White Hill,then they over react and we get into a politeness competition.
On 17 Apr 2013 at 9:31am Horseman7 wrote:
Lopster, I think the priority was changed back last time because it was only intended to be in place for the duration of some roadworks.
On 17 Apr 2013 at 12:25pm Grumpy trader wrote:
@ sussex Jim I don't think sun street will become a rat run as the selfish twonks won't let you out to turn right , that's my experince so far , so it's abinger for me from now on ,
On 17 Apr 2013 at 3:21pm CLOWSIE wrote:
I was against the priority change as I think it will just move the pollution problem from Fishers Street to Abinger Place (where I live), Also I worry about the young kids that come up St Johns Street every morning as the cars turning right from Fishers Street which they can now do without slowing down will hit one. I've seen a few near misses already. Has the No Right Turn been added to Sun Street already?
On 17 Apr 2013 at 5:33pm Nellie wrote:
It seem logical to have the traffic give way at Fisher St, since the traffic emerging will have to slow considerably to make the right turn into West St.
A bonkers bit of planning which probably looked very impressive on paper.
On 17 Apr 2013 at 6:29pm Ed Can Do wrote:
I'm sure last time they changed the priorities back as there were a couple of accidents and we had traffic queuing back to Landport along the Offham Road at busy times. Everyone said it was a terrible idea and it got changed back. Apparently though, as ever, some numpty up County Hall knows better than the general public so it's been changed again.
The whole things smacks of one of those projects government departments like to run to use up their budget so their budget isn't cut the next year. It's a model of funding that pervades the public sector and is completely ridiculous. My mum used to be a head teacher and the governors always insisted she spend any surplus in the annual budget otherwise the budget would be cut the following year. My sister used to work for a company that made tv ads for various government departments and in March they'd be snowed under with work as everyone tried to spend their under-spend to "protect" their budget for the next year.
It's this kind of stupid thinking that makes our public services so stupidly expensive. If only finance managers in the public sector would be rewarded for saving money and managers in general could be persuaded that it's not their money and having their budgets reduced because they don't need that much money is a good thing then we could avoid a lot of the horrific cuts to public services we're seeing at the moment.
Sadly, management posts in the public sector seem to attract the very lowest achievers in society. The ideal candidate seems to possess a very limited skill-set combined with a rock solid belief that they know better than everyone else and a determination to follow any course of action through no matter how many people tell them it's a terrible idea.
On 19 Apr 2013 at 1:11pm Penguin wrote:
Queue from Fisher Street junction was back beyond The Avenue towards Landport when I went through at about 8.15 this morning. Progress eh ?...Great isn't it.
On 19 Apr 2013 at 1:35pm SpeedoNot wrote:
These councils do not have a clue (whover is responsible in the myriad of councils out there). They always say they are working in our interests and after due consultation. Bollox! Have one authority for East Sussex. Sack 90% of the staff (sorry staff but there is no other option) and then we may, I say may, start moving forward. Or, better still. Put a penny on income tax and scrap the lot of these jobsworth councils! Ah, that feels better.
On 19 Apr 2013 at 3:13pm Tiny String wrote:
Speedonot, why speedonot, is the what your tiny manhood looks like in speedos, a tiny knot?
On 19 Apr 2013 at 4:36pm belladonna wrote:
Let's just build a by-pass and pedestrianise the whole of the town centre.....
On 23 Apr 2013 at 1:04pm TheAllknowingHead wrote:
Tis just a thought, but, perhaps, there's an opportunity for the transport planners to do to Lewes what they have so spectacularly achieved in Newhaven, Eventually bypass the town centre into oblivion!!
On 23 Apr 2013 at 3:49pm Gov wrote:
SussexJim, A zebra crossing with a centre island is considered two separate zebra crossings. See rule 195 and rule 20 of the Highway Code.
Check it out here »
On 23 Apr 2013 at 5:19pm Annette Curtin-Twitcher wrote:
Am I the only fan of the changed priorities at the bottom of Fisher Street then?
I think it's a great improvement and much safer. But then I don't go through town in the rush hour!
On 25 Apr 2013 at 3:33pm Lancaster St dweller wrote:
I don't have to commute/drive in rush hour so can't comment on how well it's working from a traffic perspective, but the official reason given at the consultation event was because the council was obliged to reduce pollution in Fisher St which was, we're told, well above national guidelines.
What I can say is that it's much more difficult crossing at the top of St John St as the cars now don't stop so they going faster, and you can't see them coming unlike those coming from the Offham Road. It's exactly as I envisaged it when I questioned this aspect of the scheme, and was told not to worry.
On balance - thumbs-down.