Busy Hastings pedestrian route in line for improvements

Residents are calling for replacement of the roadway, pavement and kerbs as well as enhancements to the street lighting in York Gardens.

A petition was presented by Labour’s Godfrey Daniel to East Sussex County Council in December and was discussed by the lead member for transport and environment today (Monday February 26).

The overall condition of road, footway and kerbs in York Gardens ‘while generally poor, is currently functional and does not require any immediate action’, according to officers.

However the county council has agreed that improvement works should be included in a future capital maintenance programme, subject to all other priorities and available budget.

Since May 2016, when the current highways maintenance contract started, there have been eight safety inspections of York Gardens by the highway steward, while seven reports from the public have been received.

A total of eleven safety defects have been raised – six potholes and five pavement issues – and addressed.

Officers have acknowledged that York Gardens supports a relatively high footfall, with pedestrians moving between Queens Road and Wellington Place, with vehicle traffic relatively low.

Refuse and recycling bins stored on the pavement make it narrow in places meaning pedestrians generally walk in the carriageway, and although the road has ‘no outstanding safety defects’ it is ‘well worn, uneven in places and is nearing the end of its serviceable life’.

Meanwhile the pavements’ surface is ‘uneven in places mainly due to the movement, loss or replacement of adjacent kerbing’.

The older-style high pressure sodium floodlights in York Gardens are in contrast to the majority of street lights in Hastings which have been converted to the modern LED type.

Officers concluded: “Work to resurface the road and footways and replace the older granite kerbing with a more consistent modern kerbing would reduce future maintenance liabilities and, combined with an upgrade of the street lighting to modern LED lighting, would provide an improved route for pedestrians.”

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