FAQs

Local Councillors for the Parish and District Council have raised issues of inappropriate traffic routing through Sargent Way and this was further raised by residents at a meeting on the 20^th May 2025. The Cabinet Member for Highways and Transport agreed to discuss the potential of a consultation on potential closure options for Sargent Way.

Several traffic surveys have been completed, in 2023 and 2024, and details of these are located on the Your Voice page [provide titles and links].

In addition, historically, a Heavy Goods Vehicle (HGV) 7.5 tonne weight limit has been put in place. With advanced signing at Newbridge and Farthings Hill junctions and the establishment of an Automatic Number Plate Recognition (ANPR) camera for the bus gate enforcement has been installed and is pending re-commissioning.

Speed ramps were established in the Neighbourhood Centre Car Park in October 2022 to try and control vehicle speed and reduce the through movement, but this continued to increase as drivers became more familiar with the cut-through.

The Neighbourhood Centre and bus gate were opened circa 2019/2020 and almost immediately through traffic movements started to take place in the car park, with the predominant movement from west to east. It was the Neighbourhood Centre works which created the downgrading of the original A281 through the area with the intention to redirected traffic to the newly completed A264 link to the A24, this downgrading was both a local plan and, development masterplan, requirement. Highway Improvements were made at the Tesco roundabout, Newbridge Junction and Farthings Hill junction to complement the downgrading, these also formed part of the agreed development proposals and were developer funded.

It is expected that closure of one side of Sargent Way, in conjunction with the removal of the through route in the Neighbourhood Centre Car Park and operational use of the (Automatic Number Plate Recognition (opens in new window)  at the bus gate, will remove in appropriate through traffic from the estate roads and reduce movement and speeds on Broadbridge Way.

Closure of one side of Sargent Way would like mean some residents not being able to use a direct route to access on to Broadbridge Way and thus require some localised re-routing.  This will depend on which side of Sargent Way is closed (which is subject to consultation and approved Traffic Regulation Order) and the individual destination or origin of the journey.

This could mean that some of the estate roads with the area might see an increase in traffic generated from local residents.  There is also no guarantee that ‘through traffic’ may still seek to use other access points into the estate (such as Ellis Road or Buck Way) to access Broadbridge Way.

The proposed changes, agreed by Horsham District Council (HDC) Planning, are to split the car park into two halves, with access into and out of the car park from Broadbridge Way at the bus gate and Sargent Way to the east.  Some of the ramps will be removed and replaced with closely spaced rubberised bollards allowing pedestrian and cycle access but preventing through movement of vehicles.

Details of the scheme are located in the supporting documents - Car Park Segregation Drawing WSCC_BBH_GA_01 and were approved by HDC Planning team in May 2025 use DISC/25/0137 in the HDC Planning Portal search function.

Once the consultation closes, the Highway Authority will undertake a detailed review of the responses.  The results will then be shared with local Councillors and their advice sought on proposed next steps.  Once agreed, the information will be made public, and the potential next steps will be outlined.

If the outcome of the consultation is seen as positive to supporting a closure option, then the next step would be to draft and publish a Traffic Regulation Order (TRO) (opens in new window) outlining the closure of part of Sargent Way, or a restriction to the use of Emergency Vehicles only (an emergency gate) the form and type of TRO restriction will be agreed with advice from the County Highway’s Legal Team.

If a TRO is published, notices will be posted locally and in local newspapers, there is a formal consultation period (21 days) for responses to be made.  Once all responses are received, they are summarised and provided to the Highways Officers.  In the advent of five or more objections it is expected that Officers will try and make contact with objectors to understand their individual issue and see the objection can be overcome.  If not, then a report is presented to the Cabinet Member for Highways and Transport for a decision on whether to enact the TRO regardless of the objections.

Officers have contacted; Fire, Ambulance and Police services and no objection has been received.  The use of an emergency gate with suitable key or number pad will be examined and also the potential for a localised key safe for use by emergency services.  The type of installation will depend on closure location and ongoing maintenance and vandalism considerations.

Highway Officers are aware that although there is a HGV ban in place along the Broadbridge Way road section, some Lorry Drivers do not notice the signs, follow out of date Sat Nav or just flaunt the traffic restrictions.  Were this to happen, and a HGV enters the estate, there needs to be some form of escape, without the HGV trying to turn or back out of the area; the ability to unlock the emergency gate and allow a vehicle to exit, but at the same time be able to question the driver, take details of the vehicle and operator to follow up, or allow the Police to intervene would be beneficial.

A review of advance signing for HGV, and all vehicles, for the closure would also form part of the route signing, should a TRO for a closure be approved.  However, Broadbridge Way is also a bus route and so items such as physical width restrictions would not be appropriate.

The problem with making anything ‘one-way’ is that it tends to increase vehicle speeds, as drivers get used to knowing there is nothing coming the other way. For this location, if ‘one-way’ was considered, it would still allow a high level of ‘through-traffic’ to use the area, something that the representations to the Highway Authority were seeking to remove.

The site to the east of Sargent Way, which is being brought forward for potential housing by Vistry, was originally earmarked for a school in the development plan. The Department for Education and Skills (DFES) was originally looking to develop a school on the land, but this was unsuccessful.  As such, the land was returned to the developer and became available for further housing. The Planning Authority, Horsham District Council (HDC), will deal with the site as part of the normal planning process; highway evidence (in the form of a Transport Assessment) will be submitted alongside the application and will be assessed by the County Highways Development Control team and responses made to the Planning Authority.

The planning application number is DC/25/0894 and comments by the Highway Authority Development Control team are contained on the HDC Planning Portal, which can be accessed using the application number.

Although these items have been raised by residents, as issues in their responses to the County, the key item driving these is the inappropriate through movement traffic.  The traffic surveys have shown that, in Sargent Way, speeds were already below 20mph and that around the area speeds were within the 30mph limit criteria.   There is already sufficient traffic calming within the estate, with raised tables, tight bends and on street parking all forms of speed control deployed as part of the original estate design, and their success is reflected in the measured vehicle speeds.  Of course, the County appreciates that this does not stop some individuals from driving at excessive speed regardless of the posted speed limit and this can only be controlled through enforcement.

Nonetheless, if there is sufficient residents feedback for a speed reduction to 20mph, as part of the consultation responses, then this will be reported to Councillors for their review and direction.

Any change in area wide speed limit requires a formal TRO and new signing (if approved), this would affect not just Broadbridge Way but routes into and out of the estate at the A264 junctions.  

The timing of any speed limit change would be considered alongside any formal TRO for restrictions on Sargent Way to seek to reduce advertising and reporting costs.

The most effective way to report a fault or problem on the highway is to use our online reporting application with multiple options. For further information, please visit - Make an enquiry or report a problem with a road or pavement (opens in new tab) via the West Sussex Council website. 

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