East Sussex BSIP - A259 Seaside and St Anthony's Avenue - Traffic Regulation Order Consultation

Overview

East Sussex Bus Service Improvement Plan (BSIP)
A259 Seaside and St Anthony's Avenue
Traffic Regulation Order consultation

The formal Traffic Regulation Order consultation has now closed.

All representations will be considered and replied to. Any unresolved objections will need to be reported to the County Council’s Planning Committee later this year.

Following the public consultations in summer 2023 and summer 2024 on the intial and then revised proposals, and informal pre-TRO consultation held from December 2024 to January 2025, we are now formally advertising the Traffic Regulation Order (TRO) for the A259 Seaside and St Anthony’s Avenue bus priority scheme in Eastbourne.

A TRO is a legal document that controls traffic flow, parking and speed-limits. TROs help the Highway Authority to manage the road network for all users, including pedestrians, and can improve road safety and access to facilities. 

Background

The A259 Seaside and St Anthony’s Avenue scheme in Eastbourne is part of a package of bus priority measures that the County Council initially consulted upon in summer 2023 at feasibility stage. Further consultation was undertaken in summer 2024 on revised scheme proposals in response to previous local feedback from the summer 2023 consultation. 

Approval to progress the scheme to preliminary design, detailed design and construction was given by the County Council’s Lead Member for Transport and Environment in November 2024.

The proposals are currently at preliminary design stage and have been further refined in response to feedback received during the December 2024 to January 2025 informal pre-TRO consultation.

The scheme will be funded through Bus Service Improvement Plan funding that East Sussex County Council has received from Government to deliver bus priority infrastructure in the county.

Introducing the A259 Seaside and St Anthony’s Avenue bus priority scheme is integral to delivering the East Sussex Local Transport Plan 4, so that residents can enjoy higher quality bus services, improved journey times with reduced delays, that provide a frequent, integrated and comprehensive choice and an alternative to the car.

In doing so, the bus priority measures will help to support connectivity to key destinations, reduce congestion and strengthen the resilience of the transport network; make a positive contribution towards improving air quality as well as decarbonising transport and travel to support the achievement of the County Council’s target of net zero carbon emissions by 2050 at the latest and the Borough Council’s same ambition by 2030.

Scheme Progress

1. ● Feasibility Stage – Completed 2023
2. ● Initial Public Consultation – Completed 2023
3. ● Second Public Consultation on Revised Design – Completed 2024
4. ● Traffic Regulation Order (TRO) pre-consultation – Completed 2025
5. ● Preliminary Design including formal TRO consultation – In Progress
6. ● Detailed Design – Due to commence 2025
7. ● Construction – Due to commence 2025/2026

Bus Priority Proposals

The A259 Seaside and St Anthony’s Avenue bus priority scheme will  provide bus lanes between the junctions of A259 Seaside/Windermere Crescent and Langney Roundabout. As part of the scheme, we are proposing to:

Windermere Crescent to Seaside Roundabout

• Introduce new eastbound bus lane between Windermere Crescent and Seaside Roundabout. With the introduction of the bus lane, existing on-street parking on the north side of Seaside between Churchdale Road and Southbourne Road will be removed. A section of parking provision behind the bus lane to be retained between Finmere Road and Northbourne Road.
• Introduce limited wait parking, 8am - 6pm, 1 hour no return within one hour on the south side of Seaside between Rye Street and Winchelsea Road.
• Upgrade the existing staggered pedestrian crossing between Windermere Crescent and Channel View Road to allow pedestrians to cross in one movement.
• Retain eastbound bus stops at The Archery and Arlington Arms, and westbound bus stops at The Archery, Alexandra Arms and Winchelsea Road.
• Relocate Tesco bus stop further west towards Northbourne Road.
• Replace the existing zebra crossing between Southbourne Road and Finmere Road, removing centre island to provide a signalised puffin (pedestrian) crossing.
• Retain a right-hand turning space for one vehicle at Southbourne Road.
• Retain a right-hand turning space for one vehicle at Northbourne Road. This would necessitate the loss of some on-street parking. 
• Remove a short section of uncontrolled parking west of Allfrey Road and replace with double yellow lines.
• Introduce new uncontrolled on-street parking on the south side of Seaside between Myrtle Road and Fort Road. Existing staggered pedestrian crossing to be removed.
• Introduce new signalised puffin (pedestrian) crossing between Fort Road and Seaside Roundabout to allow pedestrians to cross in one movement.

Seaside Roundabout to Langney Roundabout

• Introduce new westbound bus lane between Langney Roundabout and Seaside Roundabout. All current uncontrolled parking will be removed on the south side of St Anthony’s Avenue and Seaside between Langney Roundabout and Seaside Roundabout. Ambulance bays at Queen Alexandra Cottage Homes will also be removed.
• Introduce new signalised puffin (pedestrian) crossing on Seaside immediately east of Seaside Roundabout.
• Introduce new bus stop cage/clearway markings for Langney Roundabout South bus stop (eastbound), replacing a section of existing uncontrolled on-street parking.
• Retain eastbound Winston Crescent bus stop and westbound bus stops at Winston Crescent and Langney Roundabout.
• Upgrade the existing staggered pedestrian crossing on Seaside west of Winston Crescent/Leeds Avenue junction to allow pedestrians to cross in one movement. Centre island to the east of Winston Crescent to be retained. Westbound right turn pocket into Winston Crescent to be retained.
• Retain centre island east of Leeds Avenue. Westbound right turn pockets into Lidl and Leeds Avenue to be retained.
• Introduce new on-street uncontrolled parking on the north side of Seaside at Crumbles Sewer. Existing centre island to be removed and replaced with a built-out kerb to reduce road width for pedestrians and cyclists crossing.
• Retain the existing uncontrolled parking on the north side of St Anthony’s Avenue from Seaville Drive to Langney Roundabout.

The impact on tree loss for the A259 Seaside & St Anthony’s Avenue bus priority scheme can be summarised as below:

• One tree removal expected on Seaside opposite no. 391.

A dedicated consultation will be held in 2025 on the proposed tree loss required for this scheme.

Proposal plans

Please see the below plans showing the proposed layout and changes in the scheme:

You can view and download a PDF copy of the proposed layout here.
*update as of 29/05/25: A previous version of the above drawings incorrectly labelled 'Seaside' as 'Seaside Road'. This has been corrected in the updated proposed layout drawings.

For comparison purposes, the exising layout drawings can also be viewed here.

Traffic Regulation Order

Copies of the proposed Order, plans showing the lengths of road in detail and a statement of the Council’s reasons for proposing the Order can be viewed and downloaded via the links at the bottom of this page. A physical copy will also be available to view at County Hall Reception, St Anne’s Crescent, Lewes BN7 1UE or at Eastbourne Town Hall, Grove Road, Eastbourne, BN21 4UG.

If you use assistive technology (such as a screen reader) and need a version of these documents in a different format, or you have problems accessing the documents generally, please email BSIPconsultation@eastsussex.gov.uk or telephone or telephone East Sussex Highways on 0345 60 80 193.

Why your views matter

The representations we receive at this Traffic Regulation Order consultation stage will provide invaluable feedback that will help inform the decision-making process on how the schemes proposals should advance.

You can also make a representation via email at BSIPconsultation@eastsussex.gov.uk or by post to:

BSIP Seaside & St Anthony's Avenue Formal TRO
Major Projects & Growth
East Sussex County Council
County Hall
Lewes
BN7 1UE

Please ensure that you provide your name and email contact details in your representation, so that we will be able to provide a response. Any representations missing contact information will not be able to be considered towards this TRO consultation.

All representations must be received by 23:59 on 13/06/2025.

East Sussex County Council takes data protection seriously. For further information please see our Privacy Notice here.

What happens next

The formal Traffic Regulation Order consultation has now closed.

All representations will be considered and replied to. Any unresolved objections will need to be reported to the County Council’s Planning Committee later this year.