FAQs

The Bognor Regis Esplanade Public Realm Improvements are one of six infrastructure projects taking place to improve the look and feel of Bognor Regis seafront. In August 2022, the Place St Maur Open Space was the first of the set of improvements to be completed. The Esplanade, Alexandra Theatre, Regis Centre (former Brewers Fayre building), Bognor Regis Arcade and the Premier Inn development are all planned for construction in the next few years.

Overall, there will be a net reduction of 19 parking spaces in order to establish improved pedestrian safety.  ADC are in the process of reviewing utilisation of their off street car parks across the town, with early indications that the net loss in parking along the Esplanade can be managed by off street parking availability.

The current plans do not include the provision of additional cycle parking, at this time, but this could be added on land adjacent to the scheme in the recently completed Place St Maur area with the agreement of the District Council.  

The WSCC project team discussed the potential for a new cycle link between the Promenade, the Esplanade (at the central crossing) and across Place St Maur, crossing Belmont Street and using York Road.   However, the costs of major changes to the sea wall and upgrade of the current Puffin Crossing to a Toucan Crossing and establishing a route through the recently upgraded Place St Maur has made this link unlikely, unless additional external funding can be provided and a suitable route through Place St Maur can be achieved.

There will be an addition of new trees alongside those that are currently there, where underground utilities, drainage and clearance to traffic signals can be maintained.  Trial holes to check for services and drainage are planned and will inform the latter stages of the planting scheme.

Discussions have been held between the Highway Authority and the District Council on the potential to allow for a seasonal closure of the Esplanade between April and October each year.  Although this might be seen as a benefit, the removal of car parking along this section, which provided around 22,000 parking events in the same period in 2021, and for which there would not be a re-provision of parking elsewhere, would likely remove significant footfall from the area and have a direct impact on the immediate local businesses on the seafront.  If temporary closures of the Esplanade, for specific events, is required there are sufficient existing powers that the District Council can use.

A traffic report prepared by ADC and their consultant, WSP, of the potential highway impacts of a closure has also been completed and, in the medium to long term, traffic growth in the area would require some junction improvement, for which there is no currently identified funding, or a substantive increase in active travel modes such as walking and cycling to reduce car use.

Yes, access to all businesses will be retained throughout. Although there may be some temporary closures whilst road resurfacing works are undertaken and some access restrictions when parking areas will be closed to allow for construction works.  Notices of suspended parking will be placed in the area in advance of the works and local businesses advised.

The local Environmental Health Officer will be notified of the works and how these are to be managed through a Construction Environmental Management Plan and also a Construction Quality Plan. These would set out how the contractor will manage noise (from equipment and operations), how they would notify and manage communications and also what construction approaches are being used to reduce noisy operations or when they take place.

These requirements would be set out in the tender documents so that contractors can plan quality responses for how they would deal, sensitively, with construction noise and other nuisance during the works. Any contractor used will work under guidelines from WSCC and other bodies which will manage the hours of work and noise levels as appropriate. However, some disruption/noise will be unavoidable to complete the works. Adjacent businesses/residents will be kept informed of works and there will be points of contact with WSCC and the contractor should any issues occur.

Several positive items should come from the scheme including:

• Improved place shaping
• Improved pedestrian access and disabled access between the Esplanade and Seafront, additional crossing facility to the west of the scheme with raised table crossing
• The addition of a walkway between parked cars and sea wall to improve pedestrian safety
• Creation of a 20mph zone through traffic calming features, road narrowing and removal of centreline markings to change the ‘character’ of the road and assist in making it more pedestrian friendly
• Greening of the area with planting to create pleasant surroundings
• Additional seating areas and provision of litter bins
• Assist in urban regeneration around the Regis centre to help attract visitors to the sea front and improve economic growth.

The Esplanade Scheme is predominantly a highway and public realm improvement and seeks to improve accessibility, safety and to “green” the area at key crossing locations and along the road.  It is not believed that this will have any negative effects on customers, businesses or residents.

Improved footway access to the seafront; provision of the sea wall walkways and additional seating and waiting areas should have a positive effect on a variety of groups of people.

We are aware that during works like this traffic delays can take place, and this has an impact on the environment over the scheme delivery period. However, this scheme aims to improve environmental conditions for the town by promoting walking and cycling to encourage the shift to more sustainable modes of transport. 

Additionally, the proposals will introduce new plants to the area and will introduce some electric vehicle charging parking bays.