Exhibition on plans for A27 works (From The Argus)

Exhibition on plans for A27 works at Lancing

7:00am Sunday 2nd September 2012 in News

Residents concerned about 14 weeks of planned roadworks attended a special exhibition.

The Highways Agency invited those affected by the works on the A27 to a display of the plans at the Harriet Johnson Centre in Sompting, on Friday, August 31.

The works to improve drainage will take place between Dankton Lane and the Adur Viaduct in Lancing and are due to start on September 17.

Peter Phillips, Highways Agency project manager, tried to allay the fears of residents over traffic.

Disruption He said the agency had studied traffic patterns and had planned the works for minimal disruption.

He added: “We have been working really hard to keep disruption to a minimum.

“The road was getting to a state where it could start being a problem.

“If we did not act now it would become a bigger and bigger job.

“This will stop the deterioration of the roads.”

Mr Phillips said only extreme weather would force the project to be delayed beyond the expected completion date.

He added the work had been scheduled before this summer, which was the wettest in the county for 50 years, but said the excessive rainfall had not made the task more urgent.

Resident Gordon Hayes, 74, said: “The problem is traffic flow. The road is a nightmare.”

Brenda Davies, who lives in Newman’s Gardens in Sompting, said she was worried the work would overlap with gasworks on the A259.

She said there was chaos about three years ago when work on the A27 clashed with scheduled work on the A259.