Booking requirements at the Town Council owned James West Centre are set to be revised on a temporary basis, following a recent incident on the road.
Parking issues on Brunel Drive were discussed in a Town Council Assets Committee meeting last night (Wednesday) after an overflow of vehicles saw a number of dangerous driving incidents on the road last week.
The hall was hired for a large meeting on 31st January and saw all 40 parking spaces at the centre filled and overflow cars parking on the road which is already problematic for two-way traffic.
Local Councillor Steve Keogh told the committee he witnessed a number of vehicles with all four wheels on the pavement driving to get round the parked cars and other traffic.
He said: “This is a serious issue on this road and it simply cannot be left to happen again. We [the council] could be questioned if there was an accident on the road which happened as a result of this problem.”
The James West Centre is advertised on the town council’s website to accommodate 200 people seated. Cllr Keogh claims this encourages large bookings which then, in turn, encourages a large number of vehicles which the centre cannot cater for.
Cllr Keogh is working alongside East Sussex County Councillor Gerard Fox has been working on the issue for the last two years and will be providing the council with a report after further discussions and agreements with ESCC, Road Safety Department and Highways soon.
The committee agreed that all booking enquiries in the near future will be vetted to ensure number of vehicles are limited and current hirers will be informed about the changes. It is a short-term measure to allow the council to resolve the problem.
