A seafront bus lane that was introduced under an experimental traffic order is going to stay.
The bus lane was introduced by Brighton and Hove City Council in Marine Parade between Rock Place and Broad Street in March last year.
Last Thursday (8 May), the council said that the bus lane would become a permanent fixture after a six-month consultation as part of an experimental traffic order.
The lane was funded out of a £28 million grant given to the council by the Department for Transport for the Bus Service Improvement Plan in 2022.
Before the bus lane was created under the experimental order, almost 900 people responded to a public consultation held in May and June 2024.
Around half of all comments said that the bus lane should be made longer and a third of responders thought it would speed up journeys.
The lane resulted in the loss parking bays on the south side of Marine Parade and a loading bay restricted from 6am to 6pm and then used for taxies overnight.
More deliberately engineered congestion.
Thank you , BHCC!
Congestion is caused by too many people using too many cars when a perfectly good bus service exists. Personally, I welcome this initiative but would welcome cheaper fares.
Ah – the standard comment from pro-cycling, motorist-demonising, activists that we gave come to expect.
Could also say that VG3, with it’s obsession of pandering to groups such as Bricycles, is the problem.
I remember when the OSR cycle lane extension caused congestion and increased pollution and the cycling groups said it was the motorists fault and they should cycle instead. Thankfully that genius scheme got removed.
Will be interesting to see quantitative figures on how well cyclists use the new facilities and whether they give priority to pedestrians at crossing points.
For me it’s just more encouragement to drive elsewhere and only visit Brighton when I absolutely have to.
Yes please go elsewhere
We must be reading a different comment, because that’s a perfectly reasonable comment from Ann. She’s said nothing to cycling, so that’s just a red herring, isn’t it? I think her suggestion is a reasonable one, too. If fares were cheaper, more people would be inclined to use the buses; I’d point to Germany in my own experience of a system where their local tram and bus service was five euros for unlimited usage throughout the day.
Your point about cyclists not obeying road signals is tangential, but I agree with the spirit of it. I think the main way to correct that is to mandate identification on the bikes, such as number plates, to make them accountable. Right now, and this is reflected in the stats, it is very easy to get away with those behaviours.
Actually if you look at the OSR cycle lane failure you will see now that there isn’t half as much congestion as there was when it was there so that is all the proof you need. Like the seafront the congestion is a lot worse now due to the cycle lane than it was before but that is what happens when you make a two lane road and one lane road. All the evidence is there but certain groups and councilor friends if those groups do not want to see it.
They are also manufacturing congestion for buses where roads are narrowed to the point where buses can no longer overtake each other in St James Street and Western Road. Explain that if BHCC care about bus users. Plus the removal of many useful stops in the city forcing people to walk a lot further when they may be elderly or have vulnerabilities. What they’ve done in VG3 is dangerous for bus users and pedestrians and has not improved the experience for either. A tiny bit of bus lane just before the road divides into three at the Marine Drive approach to the Aquarium is pointless and saves no one any time.
That’s a strawman argument. You can’t make any conclusions about the aquarium bus lane at the moment, since the road isn’t completed yet.
You do realise the seafront is just one section of the A259 which runs from Hampshire to Kent? Some journeys will be longer distance and even if Brighton is their destination they may well have come from somewhere with a very limited bus service or none at all. They might also have age or mobility issues, large families or need to move equipment or goods that you wouldn’t welcome on a bus! Don’t assume everyone is fortunate enough to have a frequent bus service at the end of their road or that they’re able to use a bus even if they do.
If people are not coming to Brighton there is a functioning bypass in existence. I have mobility issues and might be considered elderly by some. I have not ridden a bike in over 40 years. I welcome any initiative that reduces traffic, relieves congestion and makes the city more pleasurable and accessible whilst improving the air and atmosphere. Added to that I recognise that we cannot continue to be lazy and ignore the repercussions of our actions/inaction with regards to the planet. We need to act now so that future generations are not saddled with the consequences of our bad behaviour. We have to look at the long-term picture not the short-term convenience.
I wonder what the quantitative results of the “experimental order” was?
What was the feedback from road users?
Did the council have before and after monitoring of traffic flows, and did this achieve defined objectives?
Yet again a manufactured ‘consultation’ where we all knew they were not going to reverse the horrendously bad decision to create this ‘bus lane’, which has done nothing to speed up the buses that use that stretch of Marine Parade. Yet another waste of taxpayers’ money. Instead, the congestion has moved down towards and past Lower Rock, with traffic now trying to merge before they have to, causing actual delays in buses before they get to the bus lane. In addition, am often seeing additional delays in traffic turning right from Lower Rock, and we have on many occasions spent far too long trying to get along that stretch of road since the introduction of the bus lane – both in cars and buses. You are then having to contend with buses trying to get out of the bus lane to go into the right hand lanes, again, causing additional congestion issues. It is ill-thought out, badly done and once again shows this administration failing to listen to residents and businesses.
It’s an open secret that cllr Muten is a keen cyclist and is in bed with cycling lobbyists at Bricycles and Sustrans.
When it all goes wrong, you know who to blame
Why? It’s dangerous and in the way.
It’s all part of their bigger plan, to course loads of congestion so they can implement a congestion charge and a ULEZ zone. Not all of us can use buses etc due to working unsociable hours. Ironically i work in the rail industry and there’s no trains at can get me to Eastbourne for my 04:30 start time or past my 01:54 finishing time when on latest. Brighton has become so un- family friendly in recent years. It’s now a business by the sea, for the queer, hen or stah-do’s.
Conspiracy. There’s been absolutely no mention or plan of any ULEZ implementation.
They said exactly the same thing in every area that now has a ULEZ zone
Average time from conspiracy to fact, is anywhere between 6 months to 2 years
Nonsense. Not even remotely true.
Yet!
In May 2027 I would pay good money to go the election count and watch Trevor Muten and Bella Sankey lose their seats. Yet again another scheme waived though on anti-democratic powers.
Bla bla bla, why don’t people stop all the moans, and appreciate things in life..
But Li, it’s a classic British pastime! We all love a good moan.
Can’t wait to be able to cycle safely all the way from Hove via the Pier to Preston Park where I work. Thankyou Brighton and Hove Council .