A £41 million project to repair 38 seafront arches in King’s Road, Brighton, will be a step closer if the council’s cabinet approves £4 million of funding at a meeting this week.
A report to Brighton and Hove City Council’s cabinet advised members to fund 10 per cent of the budget for the latest stages – phases six and seven – of the Seafront Arches Renewal Programme.
This would qualify the council for £37 million towards the cost of the project from the government.
The council has already applied for a share of the Department for Transport’s £1 billion Structures Fund because the deadline was before the council’s cabinet could meet to agree the proposals.
Issues facing the arches include minor corrosion to steel joists, water-related defects and paint flaking.
The road above the A259 carries some 26,000 to 36,000 vehicles a day, along with 30,000 pedestrians and 2,000 cyclists.
Twelve of the arches are not owned by the council but by five businesses.
The report to cabinet said: “The wider programme of works is intended to ensure the continued structural integrity of the arches that support King’s Road and the A259, a critical transport corridor.
“Renewal of the arches will help maintain the safety of road users, pedestrians, cyclists and public transport services by safeguarding the infrastructure that supports the highway above.
“Any associated work such as temporary traffic measures and road restrictions will be considered if and when the bid is approved.
“The programme will also enable the continued safe occupation and commercial use of the arches beneath the highway, supporting businesses, employment, tourism and leisure activities along the seafront.
“By addressing deterioration within the structures, the scheme will reduce long-term health and safety risks associated with ageing infrastructure while improving the resilience, safety and economic vitality of this important part of the city.”
The latest phases of the arches project should start this year and affect the area in front of the King’s Road playground and from the Shelter Hall to the volleyball court.
Phases one and two, to the east and west of the i360, took place in 2013-14 and 2014-15, while the i360 was being constructed, and did not require road closures.
As this work neared completion in 2014, an arch occupied by the Fortune of War pub collapsed, leaving a hole in the A259 above.
Soon after this was repaired, work on the grade II listed Shelter Hall and arches to its east started, taking until 2020 to finish, which was phase three.
The cabinet is due to meet at Hove Town Hall at 10.30am on Thursday 17 September when a decision should be made. The meeting is scheduled to be webcast.
Agree on the works? They’ve already put the signs up on the seafront saying works are going ahead on 21st Sept! Our council is divorcing itself from the democratic process more and more. Which begs the question what about this project do they not want us to to question? It is all getting passed through very quickly, but if the arches were that dangerous, they would already be off limits to the public.