Highways Agency - Safe roads, Reliable journeys, Informed travellers

Related pages

• Executive Summary
• Introduction
• Description of the Route
• Policy Objectives
• Route Functions
• Land Use & Development Control Policy
• Route Problems & Performance
• Route Outcomes
• Strategy Impact Statement

Policy Objectives

Initial Draft Strategy - July 2004

3 Policy Objectives

3.1 Introduction

The policy objectives considered in this chapter are wider planning, economic and transport objectives, which are pertinent to the A259 and A2070. These have been derived from national, regional and local authorities. The administrative boundaries of each of the authorities from which the objectives listed below have been derived are shown on drawing TH/RMSC/E/002.

3.1.1 National Policies

The government objectives for transport are as follows.

• Environment
  To protect and enhance the built and natural environment
• Safety
  To improve safety for all travellers
• Economy
  To contribute to an efficient economy, and to support sustainable economic growth in appropriate locations
• Accessibility
  To promote accessibility to everyday facilities for all, especially those without a car
• Integration
  To promote the integration of all forms of transport and land use planning, leading to a better, more efficient transport system

The Highways Agency (HA) is responsible for implementing these objectives for the motorway and trunk road network. To achieve this, the HA has prepared a Network Strategy, which consists of a number of closely linked components:

• Focusing on Customers
• Planning in Partnership
  The role of the Regional Planning Bodies and how the HA will work with them to inform and influence the new planning process.
• Network Functions and
  The varied portfolio of routes and the very different challenges faced across the network.
• Network Efficiency
  How the HA proposes to target investment to those schemes that address the most congested part of the route, on its most important routes, using a combination of widening existing routes, improving junctions and building bypasses.
• Travel Information and Incident Management
  A programme for rolling out technology schemes.
• Safety
  Development of the existing HA Strategic Safety Plan to target its efforts on vulnerable user groups, and to identify those sections of the core network where accidents are or will be significantly statistically greater than expected.
• Environment
  The HA Environmental Policy Statement. Additional information is contained within Appendix G.
• Monitoring and Review
  The HA will keep the strategy up to date, and respond to suggestions from stakeholders.
• Maintenance
  How the HA proposes to consider whole-life costing and the Targeted Programme of Improvements (TPI) when scheduling of improvements.

A summary of the strategy and the plans that support it are included in Appendix C.

3.1.2 Regional Policies

The South East England Regional Assembly (SEERA) provides planning guidance, including a regional transport strategy. SEERA has a vision for the region that includes"a high quality transport system to act as a catalyst for continued economic growth and provide for an improved quality of life for all in a sustainable and socially inclusive manner: a regional transport system which, by 2021, matches the standards of the best in North Western Europe".

SEERA proposes that the region should be developed as a network of regional hubs and spokes. To achieve this, future development should be concentrated in existing urban areas. In addition other locations that have the potential to be developed as transport hubs of regional and sub regional significance should provide high quality interchange facilities. A network of multi-modal corridors of movement - the spokes - will connect the hubs.

Ashford has been identified as a potential growth area, forming a transport hub at the end of the A259/ A2070 route. Hastings, whilst not considered as a hub but the end of spokes radiating from Brighton, Tonbridge and Ashford, is part of the priority area for economic regeneration for the Sussex coastal towns (Shoreham Harbour to Hastings).

3.1.3 South Coast Multi Modal Study

The South Coast Multi Modal Study (SoCoMMS) examined a corridor that includes the area covered by this study. It considered a longer, wider time frame than the RMS, and looked at all modes of transport. The aim of the multi-modal study is to develop short, medium and long-term strategies to overcome the many challenges associated with road, public transport and other sustainable modes of travel. The outcome of this study is reported in Appendix D.

The SoCoMMS considered the role played by the A259 east of Hastings. The A259 provides a link between Ashford and Hastings and beyond. Currently traffic levels are low relative to the rest of the corridor (less than 10,000 vehicles per day across the Marshes). Analysis of roadside interview data shows that, at present, much of the traffic has one or both ends of its journey within the local area.

Key issues include:

• The A259 at Winchelsea and Rye is too narrow in places, and the presence of traffic affects these towns.
• The A259 east of Hastings, particularly at Rye and Winchelsea does not have a standard typically associated with a trunk road. While the flows are low there are issues associated with the hill at Winchelsea and the route at Rye.
• Private vehicle travel demand between Hastings and the Kent boundary is very small at present, except perhaps during the peak of the holiday season. For this reason there are no significant capacity problems on the A259 route between Hastings and Brenzett.
• The road's alignment, both horizontally and vertically, combine to provide slow travel times, together with safety and environmental problems between and within the towns of Winchelsea and Rye.

The SoCoMMS identified the need for safety and other local highway improvements on the A259 between Hastings and Ashford. These would be designed to improve road safety in this area and to ensure that the existing highway capacity is delivered. The improvements could include:

• renovation and strengthening of highway shoulders
• traffic control and traffic management improvements in Winchelsea and Rye
• pedestrian and cyclist measures, including refuges, guard rails and cycle lanes
• improved traffic signing, including clear goods vehicle routes
• local junction improvements, to minimise conflicting movements

The view of the transport strategy is that if future development at Ashford creates new travel demand from Hastings, this is best catered for by improved rail services. Long distance traffic from Kent westwards should be routed via the motorway network (M2, M25, M3 etc). Nonetheless, at the local level it is recognised that current traffic activity within both Rye and Winchelsea creates safety, environment and operational nuisance - there may therefore be a need to study this further, from these local perspectives. The impact of development in and around Ashford must also be monitored, particularly as the scale and location of this becomes more apparent. This may also require assumptions about highway capacity in this area to be reviewed.

With regard to safety, the Secretary of State's response to the SoCoMMS study was confined to a statement asking the Highways Agency to review safety and other local issues between Hastings and Brenzett. A number of remedial measures were recommended including maintenance; traffic management measures in Winchelsea and Rye; pedestrian and cyclist measures; and improved signing.

3.1.4 Local Policies

Local authorities produce development plans (structure plans, local plans and unitary development plans, local transport plans, and mineral and waste plans).

3.2 Summary of the Policies

The table included in Appendix G shows the relevant policies from each of the above categories and have been divided into sections using the Government's five transport objectives.

• S = Safety policies
• E = Environmental policies
• A = Accessibility policies
• I = Integration policies
• EC = Economic policies