Double roadworks set to cause major disruption as students return

Yesterday, Brighton and Hove buses released plans to manage the disruption caused by two months of road closures starting from Monday 18th September.

North Street, Brighton's busiest bus route that sees 100 buses per hour, is being resurfaced as Southern Water repairing damage to the road caused 10 years ago.

As the road is closed from the clocktower to just before East Street, buses will be diverted from North Street via West Street and the costal road where they will either continue along the road or pick up their usual routes at Old Steine.

The closure coincide with works at the Elm Grove, Lewes Road and Union Road junction, another busy thoroughfare for buses.

These disruptions clash with the beginning of Freshers' Week and will continue on into the term. This has lead to concerns that buses will be packed and delayed as students try to get to university.

A spokesperson for Brighton and Hove buses has said:

"Brighton & Hove Buses has devised a diversion plan for services using North Street during major roadworks – set to start on September 18 – designed to reduce disruption to customers’ journeys.

"The eight-week closure of North Street during road repair work, to be carried out by Southern Water, will coincide with City Council work already started to improve safety at the Lewes Road, Elm Grove and Union Road junction that is expected to last a few months.
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Brighton & Hove Buses Managing Director Martin Harris said: “Both these two major roadwork schemes are important improvements to the smooth-running of traffic in the city and we welcome them but, the fact they coincide is very, very unfortunate for customers.

“We’ve worked with the council to do our best to come up with a diversion for the North Street works that will only affect the stops on that road to minimise disruption to our customers but, delays caused by the Lewes Road work – which is completely outside our control – are inevitable and we’re extremely sorry to say these will affect our customers.”

The roadworks on Lewes Road will affect students who drive into university and thus we recommend that you plan your travel accordingly when you arrive back later in September.

For more information about specific services, customers can get in contact with Brighton & Hove Buses Customer Services Unit at [email protected] or call 01273 886200.