Brighton and Hove City Council plans for new seafront bus lane

Brighton and Hove City Council is planning to create the new westbound bus lane in Marine Parade between Lower Rock Gardens and the Sea Life Centre.

The proposals will see the Sea Life Centre bus stop, served by a number of bus routes including the 12 and 14, moved east from opposite Charles Street to opposite Madeira Place.

There would be a new traffic light crossing just east of Madeira Place and the existing pedestrian island between Camelford Street and Margaret Street would be removed.

Brighton and Hove City Council said the new bus lane will be funded with some of the £28 million it was awarded from the Department for Transport in 2022 for its bus service improvement plan.

The bus lane will end near the aquarium roundabout, which is due to be replaced with a junction as part of plans for Valley Gardens phase three.

The bus lane will end near the aquarium roundabout, which is due to be replaced with a junction as part of plans for Valley Gardens phase three (Image: Brighton and Hove City Council)

Marine Parade is a major bus route with over 250 buses in each direction per day. Traffic flow on Marine Parade varies throughout the day and year.

The council said congestion at busy times can be unpredictable on the seafront road. This makes bus journey times unreliable, sometimes causing buses to terminate routes early or start late. It said the bus lane will help more buses run to the timetable.

• READ MORE: Claims parts of city will be 'turned into no-go areas' during construction work

The bus lane would operate 24 hours a day and could also be used by taxis and cyclists. As this part of the road is very wide, there would not be any change in the number of traffic lanes.

It would be installed under an experimental traffic regulation order (Etro), meaning the council could make changes for up to 18 months before a decision is made on whether to make it permanent.

A diagram of the plans including where 15 car parking spaces would be lost (Image: Brighton and Hove City Council)

The council has launched a public consultation on the plans and is seeking feedback from residents on its online survey at https://yourvoice.brighton-hove.gov.uk/en-GB/projects/marine-parade-bus-lane.

Feedback should be submitted by June 28 and responses will be used to finalise the designs before the bus lane is due to be installed in early 2025. There will then be a further six-month consultation period after the bus lane is introduced.

Councillor Trevor Muten, chairman of the transport and sustainability committee, said: “We have a fantastic bus network in Brighton and Hove, but we’re always looking for ways to improve reliability and journey times.

“A new bus lane on Marine Parade will mean passengers reach their destination on time more often, reducing delays on a busy part of the seafront. Because of the width of the road, there will be no need to remove any traffic lanes.

“We’ve already used funding from the bus service improvement plan to make travelling by bus cheaper for families and young people, run buses later and more frequently and provide a lifeline for Breeze buses to the South Downs.

“This new bus lane will mean more reliable journey times into the heart of the city and I would encourage people to give us their feedback.”