A carer said that a red route planned for Western Road would make life harder and more limited for people with disabilities.
Catherine Lane, who cares for her elderly father, told a meeting of Brighton and Hove City Council’s cabinet today (Monday 29 June) that the red route would prevent blue badge holders from visiting shops.
An initial six-month “experimental traffic order” for the route – from Holland Road to Montpelier Road – was announced on Friday 12 June.
Ms Lane said: “Drop-off and pick-up on a road is not enough. A carer cannot leave a vulnerable person while they are inside a hairdresser. They must park outside and stay with them at all times.
“Western Road’s red route makes that impossible. Disabled bays 50 or 200 metres away, if occupied, are no use.”
She asked for a review of the red route as the cabinet prepared to approve its new carers’ strategy which is called Think Carer – Building a Carer Friendly City 2026-30.
Labour councillor Trevor Muten, the council’s cabinet member for transport and city infrastructure, said that he understood carers’ concerns and had to balance improved road safety and reduced congestion with disabled residents’ needs.
He said that blue badge holders would have an exemption to pick up and drop off.
The red route plans, he said, would have new and existing disabled bays no more than 50 metres apart for the length of the route.
Councillor Muten said: “The scheme has been subject to an equality impact assessment which specifically considers the needs of disabled people and carers.
“That said, we acknowledge your point that, for some carers, short-stay parking close to a destination, where they can remain with the person they support, is not the same as drop-off and pick-up.”
He committed to monitoring the implementation of the route and to making changes where appropriate in the first 6 to 12 months through continuing consultation.
The council intends to gather feedback from carers and disabled people through the Disabled Car Users Advisory Group while the experimental traffic order is in place.
Work is still needed to create the red route, including installing cameras, more disabled parking bays and loading bays.
For the first two weeks of operation, any drivers who break the rules can expect a warning. After that, the council plans to send a £70 penalty charge notice, with the fine reduced to £35 if paid within 14 days.
The Western Road red route is being brought in after the red routes in London Road, Preston Road and Lewes Road just over two years ago.
We live under an increasingly cruel and heartless Labour regime who only seem to care about fining residents and visitors, not serving or welcoming them. They also seem to hate businesses and the disabled.
You could be fined the same way in yellow routes before red routes, James. Nothing has changed in that part. It’s just harder for people who want to flaunt the rules to evade them.
This is incorrect. A double or single yellow line which this section of Western Rd is currently allows blue badge holders to park for up to 3 hours. The red route removes this and actually makes Western Rd inaccessible to most disabled people without carers and many with carers. You can see the correct info on Brighton Councils website.
Sorry, I wasn’t specifically talking about disabled badge exemptions, that is different, you’re right!
Most blue badges are fake anyway. The whole things a massive nonsense anyway. Drop them off, go park up and stop being pathetic
As a disabled person, I’m ashamed of this Labour council.I hope they have a heart and rethink this policy. Getting around Brighton’s shops is hard enough for people like me — and in plenty of places it’s simply impossible. Most of us don’t even have a carer. Western Road and Church Road are different. The shops sit close to the kerb, so I can actually get to them, do what I need to do, and keep some of my independence. That matters more than most able-bodied people will ever realise.
Now the council wants to take it away. They talk about traffic and fines, but they don’t seem to have thought for a second about the people who rely on these streets just to live a normal life. Please think again before you shut us out of one of the few places we can still reach and making disabled people prisoners in their own city with this red route.
This is the best transport policy to hit the city, the amount of times I’m sat on a bus on this bit of road, gridlocked not going anywhere because some entitled boomer has parked their blue badge so badly no one can get past. 50 meters is not a massive distance, if it is then you need to get a mobility scooter, park up somewhere appropriate and use that. It’s called a bit of give and take, I know that’s a foreign concept for anyone with the blue badge. Churchill square even has a charity in it for people to use them around the mall, this the OTT faux outrage is really not needed.
How can putting in an Red Route which will make it harder for people with disabilities to use a local area of Western Road be part of the Labour council’s “ Building a Carer Friendly City 2026-30” for Brighton & Hove , surely its a total contradiction . We as a city with a Labour council need to be allowing access to all , not making it harder and alienating those who need our help most! Show your compassion and rethink this scheme!
With all do respect, which businesses do you visit on this part of western road, it’s mostly kebab shops or estate agents, maybe try deliveroo? Or is it just outrage for the sakes of it?
Rude. There are a great variety of shops and restaurants in this part of Western Road.
Seriously? Choose a different hairdresser that you can park outside of.
Western Road is a street full of shops and restaurants, It dos not lead out of town so why create a red route here? I have never seen buses held up on this stretch. I do feel the impact of the buses and other heavy vehicles as the road is in such a poor state and has been for a long time. Western Road should remain double yellows with cameras to fine those who park there irresponsibly.
I am concerned that these restrictions will discourage people from visiting local shops, cafés, and other independent businesses. If customers find it too difficult or stressful to access the area, many will simply choose to go elsewhere. The council should be supporting both accessibility and the local economy, not introducing measures that risk harming both. I hope they listen to the concerns raised and find a solution that improves traffic without reducing access for those who need it most.
The red route has made Lewes Road much safer and quicker to get through, I hope it can do the same for Western Road
Most drivers with blue badges can you,be good for their general health
I am a blue badge holder with limited mobility and I welcome this initiative totally. I was undecided but my experiences with the London Road scheme have persuaded me that this is a positive move. I honestly think that it should be extended. For those claiming it will affect businesses; it is mainly down to the merchants and their friends regularly abusing the parking restrictions that have led to this.
True for the first section from Montpelier to Trafalgar St, all vapes and god knows what, but after that it’s simply not true. Each shop needs to take in deliveries and there are no rear access roads. This is the baby out with the bath water.
I think the balance always needs to be to ensure there are enough disabled bays.
Are you aware that to even get a blue badge on the mobility score (which 69% of blue badge holders have) you should not be able to walk more than 50m. So are you proposing blue badge bays every 18m so a blue badge holder can get out of their car and walk from a bay to inside a shop and back? This is obviously ridiculous as other people need to also be able to park. What if a bay is full and they need to get to their GP or a chemist. So you see the scheme is unfit for purpose and should be withdrawn rather than just sacrificing vulnerable disable people for the sake of more parking fine money. This is exactly why the road currently has single and double yellow lines.
I am aware of the criteria for multiple medical assessments, yes, and I would nuance that by reminding you that it is 50m without severe discomfort or risk, not that they need to park within 50m of every destination. Many people can and do walk more, and that is still simply an argument for more benches and rest spots.
It’s respectfully a false dichotomy to presents it as “either blue badge bays every 18m or no parking for anyone else” – that’s not reflective of reality. You have bays where they’re most needed rather than attempting impossible complete coverage.
I don’t think anyone in the council knows what it’s like to try and care for an elderly person. After looking after an elderly relative for four years I’m exhausted by it. All kinds of little things waste a huge amount of time. Taking them anywhere is a nightmare. This rule is being made by a council that has no understanding of the needs of disabled or elderly people and appears not to care about them
It is extremely unpleasant being a disabled person who needs a vehicle to be mobile in this city – it is just getting worse. At the moment we can park directly on Western Road and they are planning to remove over 100m of yellow line parking space and replace this with 4 bays on Western Road! There will be a loss of around 20 bays length or more. At the moment we or our carers can independently park there, no problems – but they want to take this away. This idea of ‘drop offs’ is ridiculous as how can you ‘drop yourself off’. There’s only a few other blue badge spaces around Western Rd, but these are all on the side roads because the residents need them there – they should be left as such. Where are they going to park. The lack of thinking and planning is appalling. My care costs will double at least for this. Someone above mentioned Lewes Rd…they couldn’t even be bothered to put one blue badge space outside the GPs…how is this remotely good for mobility disabled people, how does this not make it more expensive for the NHS or Care in the end.
If you can use a car, you can use a taxi. There are adapted ones available and the staff are helpful, understanding and considerate.
simply untrue that everyone can use a taxi
In that case, it won’t affect them will it?
…it was you that suggested taxis – you’re arguing against yourself
Cannot come soon enough to bring some order to this clogged section of the road where barber shop and vape shop owners just ignore current restrictions with impunity
You only need to install cameras to solve the problem of illegal parking not penalise everyone else.
Every single building on that route will have the need for trades at some point. How are we supposed to unload our vans? How are we supposed to be able to go in and check for an emergency leak or gas problems, or work after shop hours so as to mot disrupt their business?
I get it that from Montpelier to Trafalgar Street every single shop owner seems to think it is their given right to park all day long outside their shops. This area needs to be properly fined even if that means that the parking people have to go around in two and threes and wear body camera, or install CCTV and chase the fines.
I get it, but the other shops on the other residents should not suffer unduly for the sake of 10 or 15 terrible shops. It’s hard enough running a shop these days and B&H need variety or it’ll slowly shut down as multinationals take over. The same multinationals that dodge tax snd do zero hour contracts .