Arundel Alternative
The Arundel Alternative Route details Reasons to support Grey route damage
Arundel Alternative
 
 

Grey Route Consultation
Nov 16th - Dec 16th 2022

National Highways are holding yet another public consultation on Grey Route. It is essential we continue to object and state that the Arundel Alternative is a sensible and affordable option.

make your feelings known

You can attend any of National Highways public exhibitions in person and make your feelings known:

Saturday 3 December 2022, Arundel Town Hall - Maltravers Street, Arundel, BN18 9AP, 10am to 4pmMonday 5 December 2022, Fontwell Park Racecourse - Arundel Road, Fontwell, BN18 OSY, 11am to 7pm Saturday 10 December 2022, Walberton Pavilion - The Street, Walberton, BN18 0PJ, 10am to 4pm

community action

Come and sing Carols Against the Bypass on 10th Dec outside Walberton Pavilion - 11am and 2pm

consultation material

This is National Highways’ latest public consultation document.

All consultation documents will be available to view at the following deposit locations throughout the supplementary consultation period:

Arun Civic Centre, 1 Maltravers Rd, Littlehampton BN17 5LF - Mon to Fri 9am-1pm and 2pm-4pm Arundel Town Hall, Maltravers St, Arundel, BN18 9AP - Mon to Fri 9am-1pm
Arundel Library, Surrey St, Arundel, BN18 9DT – Mon to Fri 1pm-5pm and Thurs to Sat 9am-1pm County Hall, Chichester, West St, Chichester, PO19 1RQ - Mon to Thurs 8:30am-5pm and Fri 8:30am-4:30pm
Fontwell Park Racecourse, Arundel Rd, Fontwell, BN18 OSY - Mon to Fri 9am-5pm
South Downs Centre, North St, Midhurst, GU29 9DH - Mon to Thurs 9am-4:30pm and Fri 9am-4pm
Walberton Parish Office, The Pavilion, The Street, Walberton, BN18 0PJ - Tuesdays 9am-12pm and Thursdays 9am-12pm
Worthing Library, Richmond Rd, Worthing, BN11 1HD - Mon to Fri 9am-6pm and Sat 9am-5pm

Take Action

Join us in rejecting National Highways’ Grey Route by responding to the statutory consultation before Dec 16th 2022.

 

At Risk: Environment

National Highways claim that Grey Route will ‘limit air and light pollution, protecting our local environment’.

This is untrue. Grey Route will add to air and light pollution, severely damage the environment, and cause an increase in traffic and carbon emissions.

These images show some of the beautiful places and wildlife that will be severely impacted by Grey Route.

 
 
 

At Risk: Communities

National Highways claim that Grey Route will ‘connect local communities’.

The truth is that Grey Route will devastate surrounding communities, separating them from each other, and from the surrounding countryside.

Images show community life in Walberton, Binsted and Tortington, which will be destroyed by Grey route.

 
 
 

Climate change

National Highways claim that ‘improvements will
ease journeys to work, schools and the shops’.  

Their key aims ignore climate change which is not even mentioned in the summary consultation documents. These aims should be fulfilled by making improvements to public transport, bridges and crossing points, footpaths and cycle ways – not by building a new dual carriageway.

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Misleading figures

National Highways try to justify road building by implying that it would have a positive impact on South East’s annual £207bn contribution to the economy.

In fact, their proposals make questionable economic sense. NH have estimated that the proposed options could cost up to £455 million, but their own prediction for the maximum economic benefit that a new bypass would bring is just £378 million* - over sixty years.

Increased congestion that a new dual carriageway would bring (away from the road and which they don’t consider), would be bad for the economy. It would make far better sense to invest in a cheaper and more sustainable solution, the Arundel Alternative.

* Figures taken from page 10-13 of Highways England’s Interim Scheme Assessment Report A27 Arundel Bypass – PCF Stage 2 Further Consultation, Aug 2019.

 
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Don’t be fooled by National Highways

National Highways has already had two Public Consultations on nine different options for the Arundel Bypass, in 2017 and 2019. After two legal challenges were made against the decision, based on faulty and misleading data in the public consultation material, a High Court Judge agreed that ‘something had gone clearly and radically wrong’ with their figures, and NH decided to re-run the consultation. NH announced Grey route as its preferred option in 2021.

 

THey hid the damage

National Highways hid the damage that a previous preferred option would do to surrounding villages and woods, with mis-labelled maps, and incorrect ecological data.


Incorrect traffic figures

National Highways led people to believe that their preferred option would be the best option for reducing traffic in the South Downs. This was shown to be untrue: eight months later in their own Scheme Assessment Report, they revised their figures. All options were shown to give similar traffic relief.

Incorrect ecological reports

National Highways’ ecological data reported that the presence of rare and endangered bat species was ‘possible, but unlikely’.

Independent reports completed by the Mid Arun Valley Ecological Survey had already told them that biodiversity in Binsted and Tortington is exceptional, with 14 of the UK’s 17 bat species detected.


incorrect economics

National Highways led people to believe that their preferred option would be the best value for money. Eight months later, in the Scheme Assessment Report, value for money was reduced from ‘good’ to ‘low’.

 
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