Newsletters

Highways, Transport and Planning Update

Highways

typing on laptopThe process for reporting road and pavement issues has changed West Sussex County Council has changed the process for reporting road & pavement issues replacing it with mobile device friendly online forms and maps. Please select Report a problem with a road or pavement to be redirected to WSCC website for the issue you want to report.  To make it easier to find what you are looking for, we have grouped specific defect types together as follows: Flooding, blocked drains and gullies; Road and cycle path faults (including potholes); Pavement and verges; Trees, hedges, weeds and grass and Obstructions on the road, pavement or cycle path (this excludes abandoned vehicles & vehicles causing an obstruction). Reports are automatically loaded into our Highways Case Management System and assigned to the right team. Customers who historically reported via Love West Sussex are being redirected to the correct online form for the issue being reported. If you have bookmarked or saved the Love West Sussex web online URL and/or App to your device then please delete and save Report a problem with a road or pavement. Reporting issues and viewing case updates Online reporting enables you to: create an account, saving you time when reporting and keeping a log of your submitted reports. use the map to check if the issue has already been reported and view the status of current open reports. subscribe to updates about existing reports by viewing them on the report form map, selecting the pin for the report and submitting your email address. To receive progress updates you must register for an account or provide an email address when you submit your report. General Reminder WSCC does not manage the following issues.  Residents should contact: their District Council for parking, fly tipping, graffiti, litter or street cleaning and bus shelters. Operation Crackdown for reporting and dealing with abandoned vehicles in West Sussex. Vehicles causing an obstruction should be reported to Sussex Police. National Highways for information or reporting problems about motorways and Major A roads including the A23, M23 and A27.
road improvements£7.4million worth of road surface improvements completed countywide in six months A total of £7.4million worth of road surface improvement schemes were completed at 197 sites countywide in just six months. From April to October, 138km of road were either completely resurfaced or had surface dressing or micro-asphalt treatments.  Click here to read more.

Drainage and Ditches

floodFunding available for West Sussex communities to tackle flooding Over £3million has been distributed by County to West Sussex communities to tackle flooding, funding over 360 flood mitigation projects as part of Operation Watershed Active Communities Fund.  One example locally was the Pulborough parish: Watch this short video from Pulborough Parish Council explaining how they worked in partnership with Horsham District Council community wardens and Operation Watershed to help significantly reduce flooding in a well-used community area. Operation Watershed now has a further £500,000 available via the Active Communities Fund to support community groups interested in delivering capital projects to reduce the risk and impacts of flooding in their area, protecting the local environment for nature and for local residents. To apply for funding, please follow this link.
Ditch the problem graphic - help avoid flooding and care for the wildlife in your area! Ditch the problem! It’s that time of year when riparian ditch owners look to cut back the years growth in their ditches before winter returns in earnest. The county council is keen for riparian owners, who are responsible for the upkeep of their ditches, to clear them out. Ditches are watercourses designed to drain the surrounding area or hold water. Removing vegetation, grass, weeds, shrubs or any other debris helps water run freely and prevents flooding. Keeping local watercourses well maintained benefits the community as a whole. If an area experiences constant flooding, this becomes a nuisance to the community, can restrict access to property, makes everyday living difficult, and results in considerable expense and inconvenience for those that have been flooded. As part of the Parish and Town Councils ongoing work to support reducing flood risk impacting residents in your local area, we would encourage you to raise awareness and promote what people can do to reduce the risk of flooding.   The Riparian Ownership and Responsibilities material available on our website to download will provide useful practical information and guidance for landowners and residents.   Please promote through your local newsletter or communication the electronic posters and leaflets or if you prefer hard copies we have a small supply of posters available if you request through operation.watershed@westsussex.gov.uk

Climate Change

Climate Action Share your ideas on the Resident Climate Action Hub A new online space has been launched for residents to share their ideas and views on ways to tackle climate change. The interactive Resident Climate Action Hub by West Sussex County Council aims to provide an online space for people to share their ideas and views on ways to tackle climate change. Actions that individuals, households, and communities could take can be added to the Ideas Bank, and people can start conversations on the Discussion Forum on issues such as electric vehicles, recycling, biodiversity, and food waste. Find out more here.
Electric Vehicle ChargepointsFunding awarded for Electric Vehicle Charging Points The Government have awarded the West Sussex Chargepoint Network funding of up to £1.8million. This is providing electric vehicle (EV) chargepoints for residents in areas which have no off-street parking. The award is to part-fund up to 450 on-street chargepoints and 100 in public car parks. The remaining installation costs will be covered by EV chargepoint company Connected Kerb, one of the UK’s leading providers of EV charging infrastructure solutions. Proposed locations from the initial phase of the on-street chargepoint rollout can be viewed at: https://www.connectedkerb.com/west-sussex-chargepoint-network-residents The initial 450 on-street chargepoints will be going through the Traffic Regulation Order statutory consultation within the next month. The project is fully funded by Connected Kerb, meaning zero cost to the councils and is the biggest roll out of EV Chargepoints in the country. To find out more information visit our website.

On the buses

bus back betterBus Back Better funding update In March 2021, the government published a new National Bus Strategy (Bus Back Better) which sets out its vision to dramatically improve bus services in England, reverse the shift in journeys away from public transport as a result of Covid-19, and encourage passengers back to buses.  It has now been confirmed that West Sussex County Council will receive £17.4 million of government funding towards bus service improvements. Watch this space for further information in the new year.
busEnhanced Partnership Statutory Stakeholder Consultation (West Sussex) Central to the National Bus Strategy is the creation of Enhanced Partnerships, where local authorities, bus operators and other key stakeholders work together to develop and implement bus service improvements for local communities. The West Sussex Enhanced Partnership will set out how we will deliver the outcomes of our Bus Service Improvement Plan, published in October 2021 following engagement with the public, operators, and other key stakeholders.  Further to this engagement, we would now like to hear from organisations and individual stakeholders who have an interest in making bus services work better.  You can have your say on the proposed Partnership by accessing the consultation link below: https://yourvoice.westsussex.gov.uk/enhanced-partnership-statutory-stakeholder-consultation Please share your views by midnight on Tuesday 3 January 2023.
Real Time Passenger Information (RTPI) signHelp us find new locations for Real Time Passenger Information (RTPI) signs You’ve probably seen plenty of Real Time Passenger Information (RTPI) signs at bus stops across West Sussex. They provide up to date information about the arrival of buses on your chosen route. As part of the bus improvement funding coming to the county council, we plan to increase the number of RTPIs and would like residents to help us decide where they need to go. Visit the #WestSussBus page and click the RealTime Information Signs tab and put a pin in the map where you think they should go. Think of this as a project for these dark winter months, and let us know your RTPI locations by Tuesday 28 February 2023.

Countryside

Volunteers working in ColgatePublic Rights of Way Volunteer Rangers Tasks The Public Rights of Way Volunteer Rangers have been working hard to improve and replace bridges across the county. Volunteers completed work in Cuckfield, Upper Beeding and Colgate, even when they were faced with some difficulties along the way, such as access in Cuckfield. In Itchingfield the Volunteer Rangers cleared over 1km of vegetation on a bridleway. A section of the bridleway was along unregistered land and had become narrowed by surface vegetation and encroached Rhododendron and a couple of fallen trees, which have now been cleared. A footpath had to be temporarily closed in Easebourne due to erosion. The Volunteer Rangers cut back the overgrown brambles and installed a section of revetment and levelled the surface. Steps were added to make the slope easier for users and the closure has been lifted.

Leave a Reply