Commuters on the A27 in East Sussex set to endure years of misery as road improvements hinge on Gatwick expansion

The coalition announced the “biggest, boldest and most far-reaching roads programme for decades”, with £350 million earmarked to cut congestion on the A27, including a bypass at Arundel.

But East Sussex could miss out completely unless Gatwick is chosen for expansion by the Airport Commission next year.

In a joint statement in parliament, Transport Secretary Patrick McLoughlin and Chief Secretary to the Treasury Danny Alexander, pledged £350million to help ease congestion along the A27.

In particular a new bypass at Arundel, improvements around Worthing and Lancing and work to the existing bypass to the south of Chichester.

Around £100million, included in the £350million total, was “set aside” to improve the road between Lewes and Polegate, however, that would only be released if Gatwick was given the go ahead for expansion over rival Heathrow.

Announcing the plans, Mr McLoughlin MP, said: “Today I am setting out the biggest, boldest and most far-reaching roads programme for decades. It will dramatically improve the network and unlock Britain’s economic potential.

“Roads are key to our nation’s prosperity. For too long they have suffered from under-investment.”

Mr Alexander MP added: “World class infrastructure is vital if we are to build a stronger economy, but it matters in other ways too.

“It invigorates communities and gives people more opportunities to get on in life. This is why I have ensured that this government has prioritised funding roads, and railways, at a high level for future generations.

‘Roads have suffered’ “For decades our roads have suffered from under investment, so I’m particularly delighted to be able to announce this expansive range of new road schemes today. Investment on this scale is only possible because we have taken the difficult decisions needed to control our public finances and stuck to our recovery plan which is now delivering strong growth and record numbers of jobs.”

The details of the plans are still at an early stage with consultation and local planning to take place.

However, the government's announcement gives brief outlines.

At Arundel, a new dual carriageway bypass is planned to link together the existing dual carriageway sections of the road.

The starting point, the proposal states, “will be the previous preferred route, subject to consultation with the National Park Authority, local government and the public on this, and alternative options”.

The A27 improvements at Worthing and Lancing are said to include increased capacity of the road and works to the junctions along the stretch of single carriageway running through Worthing and narrow lane dual carriageway in Lancing.

The extent and scale of the improvements, including the option of full dualling, are to be agreed in consultation with West Sussex County Council and the public.

The improvements to the Chichester bypass were announced last year but will be included in this year’s funding.

The plans, which are set for public consultation next July, will tackle four problem junctions which regularly lead to delays.

Environment surveys and traffic flow modelling are currently taking place before plans are published in the new year.

If all goes to plan construction should start in February 2018 with work finished by December 2019.

With details of all the schemes still at a minimum, only estimate budget figures have been produced.

Between £100million and £250million has been set aside for the Arundel bypass along with the same amount for the Chichester improvements.

Between £50million and £100million is in place for the Worthing and Lancing stretch.

The news has been widely welcomed across the county with West Sussex County Council leader Louise Goldsmith describing the announcement as “fantastic”.

However, she said it was “vital” the government consults local communities before pressing ahead.

She said: “We’d like to thank all businesses who signed up to the campaign for their help and provided evidence through the survey and case studies.

“Now we are keen to continue working with our partners and the Government on options for addressing the key blockages at Arundel, Worthing, Lancing to achieve dualling along the A27 corridor.”

She added: “The County Council is looking to achieve an overall balance between the needs of communities and businesses.

“This includes the future needs of the residents and businesses of West Sussex that will help ensure jobs and economic growth.

“It also includes effects on the South Downs National Park, air quality, the environment in towns and villages that are currently subject to rat running by through traffic on local routes.”

She told The Argus the county council was also supportive of improving public transport links but said work to the A27 must come first.

Also quick to welcome the announcement was Conservative MP for Arundel and South Downs, Nick Herbert.

He said problems at Arundel had caused delays, forcing traffic up into the historic town for far too long.

He added: “I am delighted that the Government has heard the strong case which we have made for a bypass which will benefit the local economy and the environment alike.

“There will be full public consultation about the bypass, so everyone will get their chance to have a say. However, along with all of Arundel’s elected representatives at the town, district and county council level, I continue to believe that the bypass is needed. I am glad that this is the starting point for the consultation, and I do not support other proposed routes.”

However, there was concern about the announcement from a number of groups and criticism from others.

The South Downs National Park Authority, which will likely see the Arundel bypass run through their area, said there were “strong protagonists” both “for and against” proposals and that it was for the government to take a view if they should go ahead.

Andrew Lee, the authority’s director of strategy and partnerships, said: “In doing this the potential impacts upon the special qualities of the South Downs National Park are a crucial issue and are our primary concern.

“The SDNPA will therefore be looking for evidence in any route options that may be brought forward in future that there are no other more sustainable transport measures which would have a lesser negative impact, robust data on the nature and scale of the impacts on the National Park that would arise, and detail on how they would be mitigated or compensated for, bearing in mind that this is a nationally designated landscape.”

Derrick Coffee, county officer for the Campaign for Better Transport, said the plans placed doubt over the status of the National Park.

He said: “This bypass is going to have to be built in the National Park – does that mean they are going to have to re-draw the boundaries?

“People visit National Parks for the countryside, the scenery and the beautiful settings – they don’t want to see a great big road.”

Mr Coffee told The Argus the government had gone about the funding handout in the wrong way, by treating the road as a corridor of mass east to west movement.

He added: “Studies show that journeys are much shorter with very few travelling from end to end.

“There should be a travel plan to establish the origins and the destinations of the traffic and then work from there.

“All this will do is increase congestion in urban areas. Most of these journeys will begin and end in urban areas and by improving the A27 people will perceive the whole infrastructure to be better. It will just clog up the local roads.”

He called on the government to instead look at other ways to move people away from car ownership, with a focus on sustainable transport.

He added: “I would say it is a blow for sustainable transport. It creates an impression that it is less important and something to be added on rather than at the core of transport policy.”

Friends of the Earth went further in their criticism, stating the government was “heading in the wrong direction” with “more out-of-date thinking”.

Brenda Pollack, from the group, said: “Many of the schemes will increase road capacity and lead to more traffic and air pollution.

“Investment in transport is urgently needed, but the priority must be better trains, buses and cycling facilities, not an expensive road building programme that will make it harder to tackle climate change.”

A spokesman for East Sussex County Council said: “This is good news, but we are still working through the detail of this announcement and what it means for the stretch between Lewes and Polegate.

"We believe there is a strong case for future improvements in particular a new off line dual carriageway and we hope to be able to make the argument for this over the coming months.”

A Treasury spokesman said that while road schemes often take many years to come to fruition, the government was “determined” to push ahead with the proposal. He added that work would hopefully begin with the next government.