A24 Worthing to Horsham and Dorking Transport Improvements

Proposed transport network improvements

We are working to improve the transport network across West Sussex and Surrey. By making it safer, easier and more convenient to walk, cycle, use public transport and improving the standards of our roads, we can help to create more pleasant places in which to live, work and do business.

The West Sussex Transport Plan (opens in new window) and Surrey Transport Plan (opens in new window) set out how the councils intend to address a number of challenges, including climate change, congestion, public health and road safety through improvements to the transport network.

Improvements to the A24 between Worthing, Horsham and Dorking would support the aims of both plans so we have been considering what potential measures could be put in place along the corridor.

Engagement and consultation

We are now raising awareness on the types of improvements we are considering along the A24 corridor and seeking initial feedback. The comments we receive will help identify key constraints, issues, and opportunities that will be used to shape our plans for the area and enable us to seek future funding opportunities.

Subject to the feedback we receive, we expect to carry out future consultation, where we would present plans for the proposals.

We would like to hear your views on our ideas, so please complete the survey and provide your comments on the interactive map.

The initial engagement period will close on Monday 27 October 2025 at 11:55pm.

Area covered by the improvements

The area covered by the engagement exercise includes the A24 from the A25 Dorking Deepdene roundabout and nearby railway stations in Dorking, to Horsham, and to the A27 Offington Roundabout in Worthing. The area also includes the A280 Long Furlong between the A27 at Clapham and A24 at Findon because of the importance of this link in connecting the A27 with the A24.

Why we need a scheme

The A24 between Worthing, Horsham and Dorking is an important route for access to jobs, education and services. It not only supports short-distance journeys near to the main settlements along the corridor but also longer journeys across the area. The A24 also acts as an important alternative route to the M23/A23 and A3 corridors connecting south coast communities and rural parts of West Sussex and Surrey towards Gatwick Airport, the M25 and London.

The majority of journeys along the corridor are currently made by private cars and public transport use is low. This results in congestion, especially during peak times, which makes bus journeys longer and services unreliable. It also encourages rat running on rural and residential roads away from the A24.

Congestion along the corridor is expected to worsen as new developments in the area come forward, which could be exacerbated by an expansion of Gatwick Airport.

There are limited pedestrian and cycle facilities along the A24 corridor, including a lack of suitable crossings for different types of user. The facilities that do exist do not meet the latest design guidance along many sections of the route.

Road safety is also a problem, with some parts of the corridor having a high number and rate of collisions. Some of these have involved pedestrians and cyclists.

These issues limit the attractiveness of using public transport, cycling and walking, while also restricting access across the A24 for different user groups. These issues could be addressed by improvements along the corridor, which are outlined below.

There are also environmental impacts associated with the A24 corridor including traffic emissions, noise, and wildlife disruption, while the A24 passes through protected landscapes including the South Downs National Park and the Surrey Hills National Landscape, and this needs to be taken into account as we develop any improvements.

Objectives

A series of A24 corridor objectives (opens in new window) have been identified for improvements focusing on health, accessibility, sustainable growth, environmental protection and deliverability. We would like to understand views about these objectives through the survey below.

Our ideas

Our ideas for the corridor include vehicle capacity improvements at key junctions to address congestion issues, as well as road safety measures. Our ideas also include infrastructure improvements to make bus services more reliable and a more attractive transport choice, and enhancements to make active travel a more comfortable, attractive, and safe option for journeys along and across the corridor. This could help reduce the number of car journeys, if more short distance trips are made by public transport, cycling and walking instead.

To ease vehicle congestion along sections of the road we have considered building new stretches of road parallel to the existing A24. Initial work has indicated that the high cost and significant environmental impacts of these options means they are not currently deliverable.

The types of improvements that we are considering along the existing route include:

• junction capacity improvements
• bus priority and bus stop improvements
• walking and cycling path improvements
• crossing facilities for people walking, cycling and horse-riding
• road safety improvements including junction modifications, safety barriers and speed limit changes

A more detailed summary of the types of improvement being considered and what they might mean is available to view - A24 corridor types of measure note and glossary (opens in new window).

The scheme is at an early stage of development and future delivery is likely to depend on securing Government grant funding, so it may be several years before construction could commence on the larger scale schemes.

Have your say

We would like to hear your views on these proposed improvements by completing our survey (opens in new window). The engagement period is open until 11:55pm on Monday 27 October 2025.

Your feedback is important to us and will help shape the designs moving forward. Please take this opportunity to let us know what you think, it should only take approximately 10 minutes to complete the survey. We also invite you to provide your comments on the interactive map (opens in new window).

This public engagement is building on targeted engagement that we previously undertook with representatives of organisations along the A24 corridor which helped to understand some of the local issues, develop objectives and begin to flesh out the potential types of measures that could be brought forward. This is summarised in the A24 corridor stakeholder engagement summary (opens in new window). Through this public engagement exercise we hope to understand the views of the wider communities on some of the work completed to date, as well as any further comments from representatives of organisations.

Alternative formats and accessibility

If you require any of this information in an alternative format, then please contact us via email at LTP@westsussex.gov.uk(External link) or by telephone on 01243 642105 and we will do our best to assist you. If you are deaf or hard of hearing and have a BT Relay UK app (opens in new window)(External link)(External link) installed on your PC, laptop or smartphone, you can contact us on 18001 01243 642105.

For more information about the accessibility of this website, please see our Accessibility tab (opens in new window) at the foot of the page.

Please note, you can use the Google Translate function to access this project in a range of different languages. The Google Translate widget can be found at the top left-hand side of the project page, where it sits just above the black West Sussex County Council ribbon.